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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 






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PIETY 



HUMBLE LIFE: 



MEMOIR OF MR. ANDREW LEE, 



A BELOVED SABBATH SCHOOL TEACHER AND SUPERINTENDENT. 



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BY REV. OLIVER AV TAYLOR. 
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Written for the Massachusetts Sabbath School Society, and 
Revised by the Committee of Publication. 



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BOSTON: 

MASSACHUSETTS SABBATH SCHOOL SOCIETY, 

Depository No. 13 Cornhill. 

1844. 






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Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1844, 

By C. C. DEAN, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 



I 



INTRODUCTION 



The following work contains the memoir of a be- 
loved Sabbath school teacher and superintendent, of 
this place ; and was written by request. His friends 
esteemed him so highly while living, that they wished 
to have some little monument erected to his memory, 
by which, though dead, he might still continue to 
speak. The materials of which it is composed, have 
been drawn from a variety of sources, — my own in- 
tercourse with him ; his own diary and letters, in 
connection with those of an intimate friend ; different 
accounts of revivals in the place ; and especially, from 
the various recollections of him abroad among us. 

Mr. Lee was a plain, unlettered man, mostly con- 
fined to his occupation, — the business of a common 
shoemaker, — for the support of his family. Of course , 
it will not be supposed that I always give his thoughts 
in his own literal expressions. His friends will miss 
some of his peculiarities and perhaps not a little of 
his pungency. The essential truth is the only thing 
which they must look for here. My object has been 
to present the reader with a delineation true to na- 



IV INTRODUCTION. 

ture, — to lay before him the thoughts and glowing 
feelings of the man, — in a word, to make him ac- 
quainted with his heart and soul. On the facts I bring 
forward, as also the light in which I present them, he 
may confidently rely. To the church of which he 
was so long an ornament, and for which it is my hap- 
piness to labor, the work is dedicated by one who feels 
that he bears their spiritual interests continually on 
his heart. 

I will only add, that notwithstanding the late period 
at which the work comes from the press, it was written 
out nearly two years since, or when the subject was 
fresh in my mind. 

Manchester , Nov., 1844. 



toft 



MEMOIR 



CHAPTER I. 

PROM HIS BIRTH TO HIS CONVERSION. 

Mr. Andrew Lee was born in Manches- 
ter, Mass., Sept. 1st, 1790. When only six 
years of age, he lost his father at sea. His 
mother professed herself a Universalist, un- 
til a revival under the Rev. Mr. Thurston, 
in 1809 — 10, when she was hopefully con- 
verted to God. 

Andrew was an amiable child, and evi- 
dently of a thoughtful and reflective turn. 
The first serious impressions, however, of 
any note, he remembers to have had, were, 
when he was in the ninth year of his age. 
A schoolmate had been taken sick, of the 
throat distemper, and running, in recess, un- 
der the window of the house where his friend 
1# 



D MEMOIR OF 

lay, to ascertain how he did, he heard the 
people within say, "He's gone." This 
took a strong hold of his feelings, and 
awakened him to a sense of his own condi- 
tion. " Even at that age," says he, "I felt 
I was a sinner, and by no means prepared 
to die. Nor did God give me up again im- 
mediately to hardness of heart. For a long 
time, I visited the grave of my friend, every 
week, — walking around it and weeping over 
it. The impressions of his death followed 
after me for years. Especially would it 
come up when I was alone, and in the 
night." 

When he was in the tenth or eleventh 
year of his age, another circumstance oc- 
curred, to which, though of a childish na- 
ture, he regarded himself as especially 
indebted for the early formation of some 
parts of his moral character. Two boys 
compelled him to steal a birch pole with a 
piece of twine about three yards long, and 
a pin fish-hook at the end of it ; as also a 
hoop that had come off a hogshead; the 



ANDREW LEE. 7 

whole of which was not worth more than 
a cent. " If you do not steal them for us," 
said they to him, "we will flog you!" 
Being afraid of them, he committed the 
theft, and received from them the hoop as 
the reward of his labor. " Soon afterwards, 
however," says he, "they turned king's 
evidences, and informed against me ; in con- 
sequence of which I was brought to trial. 
The owner acted as judge in the case, and 
decided that I should be flogged, or else 
should cut up half a cord of wood. In or- 
der to escape the flogging, I agreed to the 
latter condition. The wood was very dry 
and hard ; the axe too I had to use, was 
very dull; while the only time I had to 
work on it was in the intermissions of the 
school, and what leisure I could get from 
helping my mother. It required at least 
half a day to cut off a single log. I had to 
work on this wood all the summer long, 
and while I was chopping, the owner would 
come out occasionally and talk to me on 
the wickedness of stealing. It was rendered 



8 MEMOIR OF 

a most solemn lesson to me. I never dared, 
after this, to take so much as a feather that 
did not belong to me. Whenever tempted to 
do so, I seemed to hear some one crying in 
my ears, ' Remember the wood, remember 
the wood.' " 

In the revival of 1809-10, great numbers 
were brought to receive Christ and rejoice 
in his love. " Among these," says Mr. 
Lee, u were many of my associates. Nor 
did the Lord forget me. My attention was 
again called up. I had deep convictions, 
and was brought to see myself miserable 
and undone. A load of sin and guilt pressed 
upon me, and weighed me down to the 
earth. My proud heart, however, still re- 
fused to bow to the Saviour. I listened to 
false doctrines, and grieved away the Holy 
Spirit. 

" Just as I was upon the point of giving all 
up to God, the devil employed a preacher 
of his own to inveigle me astray. There 
came into the shop where I was learning 
my trade, one who professed to be a kind 



ANDREW LEE. 9 

of Universalis!, who introduced his favorite 
religious topic, and argued that all would 
be saved. He spoke very lightly of convic- 
tion and conversion, representing the reli- 
gious feelings then prevalent, as all, the 
result merely of excitement from preaching 
up hell-fire. He also went on to describe 
true religion, according to his ideas of it, — 
dwelling on the love of God, and declaring 
Christ died for all men without exception, 
and would save all. He was abetted in 
what he said by my master, who was also 
present, and entertained similar views. 
Nor did he stop here, he gave me tracts oc- 
casionally, on the subject, for my perusal. 

"My mind was, at this time, in exactly 
the state for such doctrine. Accordingly I 
listened to the preaching of the adversary's 
emissary, " Thou shalt not surely die." It 
was not easy, indeed, to shake off my con- 
victions. They followed me for seven or 
eight months. The Spirit seemed very loth 
to give me up. Soon, however, I began to 
take up with the forms of religion, while I 



10 MEMOIR OF 

denied the power thereof. I studied my 
Bible very much, to get proof that all would 
be saved; and obtain an assurance that 
Christ died for one class of persons as well 
as another. I grew very fond of contro- 
versy, and loved to engage people in argu- 
mentation and discussion upon my favorite 
topic. 

"I led a strictly moral life, — never quar- 
reling with any one, nor using any bad 
language, nor even taking so much as a 
pin's point that was not my own. I lived 
at peace with all men. I dealt justly with 
all, and loved mercy. I aimed to do all the 
good I could. I prayed occasionally in se- 
cret, and derived a kind of pleasure, a meas- 
ure of internal calmness and peace from 
the performance of my religious duties ; and 
if, at any time, my sins arose before me, I 
looked back upon myself, after all, with 
satisfaction, when compared with others, 
whom I regarded as great sinners ; and thus 
found my conscience soothed of its disqui- 
etude. On the whole, I thought I had done 



ANDREW LEE. 11 

every thing God demanded. I felt grateful 
to him for his goodness to me, and, at length, 
became confident that I loved him." 

In essentially this course, Mr. Lee went 
on for years, constantly trying to persuade 
himself that every thing would come out 
well with him at last. It all, however, 
would not answer the purpose. 

" I could never, after all," says he, " en- 
tirely get rid of the impression there was 
much wrong within me, — that something 
was still wanting which I did not possess. 
I was never quite at ease, unless engaged 
in controversy. Personal religion I greatly 
disliked. Direct appeals to the heart, I 
could not bear ; they struck me dumb. I 
should also have been ashamed to pray in 
public, notwithstanding I prayed occasion- 
ally in secret. At night, and when alone, 
I was full of fear. In particular, I trembled 
at the thought of a future retribution, and 
knew not how to dispose of what is said in 
the Bible, about a second death. There 
was, at times, a dreadful sound in my ears, 



12 MEMOIR OF 

a certain fearful looking for, of that judg- 
ment and fiery indignation which shall de- 
vour the adversaries." 

In 1813, Mr. Lee was married to a Miss 
Fanny Babcock, then nineteen years of 
age. At this time, she had been a professor 
of religion, for several years. Of course, 
they differed from each other in their reli- 
gious views. The marriage, however, 
proved a happy one, notwithstanding, and 
salutary to Mr. Lee, in its bearings upon 
his spiritual interests,— being rendered the 
means of keeping the subject of true religion 
before him during the period just referred 
to, and gradually preparing him for the 
great change which he ultimately experi- 
enced. 

The influence which his wife exerted 
upon him, was usually indirect. Some- 
times, indeed, she would talk with him on 
the subject, appealing immediately to his 
heart. Knowing, however, his fondness 
for controversy, and finding that it only 
made him worse, she gradually learned to 



ANDREW LEE. 13 

avoid all direct communications with him, 
of this kind, and chose a less obtrusive and 
suspicious mode of procedure. 

" She would select," says he, " particular 
chapters of the Bible, and tell me what im- 
pressions they made upon her own mind ; 
especially would she do this, in respect to 
her favorite hymns. The books too, and 
also the tracts which she was reading, fell, 
from time to time, in my way; so that I 
was constantly brought in contact with the 
current of her own religious thoughts and 
emotions. There was one thing which she 
did, in particular, that took a strong hold 
upon me. For nearly a week, she was ab- 
sent, hard at work, all the time, up stairs. 
I could not conceive what she was doing. 
At length, she invited me up into the cham- 
ber ; and, pointing to the bed, said : • These 
are my grave-clothes, and there are yours. 
If I should go before you, you will find 
yours put away,' (so and so, naming the 
place.) This affected me greatly. It made 
me feel deeply solemn. I could never get 
2 



14 MEMOIR OF 

over it. There they were, my grave-clothes. 
Every article had been made ready. Was 
I prepared to put them on, and lie down in 
the grave?" 

This is all we know of Mr. Lee's religious 
history, for about fourteen years after he 
was married. He was not, however, to be 
left to perish in this state. " And what was 
it," said I to him, a few weeks before his 
death, " that finally called up your attention 
to the subject of religion?" "Oh," he re- 
plied, " It was the most simple thing in the 
world. As I was alone in the shop, one 
day, the Holy Spirit seemed to put inter- 
rogatories to my soul, like the following : 
i You have now lived thirty-six years ; 
are you satisfied with your past life ? And 
suppose you should live thirty-six years 
more, in the same way; would you be 
satisfied with it then? Are you willing 
to die in this your present condition?' The 
thought that I was thirty-six years of age, 
together with the interrogatories which fol- 
lowed it, greatly startled me. The reflec- 



ANDREW LEE. 15 

tions that succeeded, took a firm hold of my 
mind. At the same time, all the fears with 
which I had previously been troubled, re- 
specting a judgment to come and the second 
death, came rushing upon me like a flood. 
I was almost overwhelmed with emotion, 
and knew not what to do. 

" In this state of mind, I went to a broth- 
er Universalist, and told him my anxieties, 
asking what these things meant. He sat 
in apparent astonishment, for about five 
minutes, before he made me any reply ; and 
then told me to go home and read the 15th 
chapter of 1 Corinthians, adding, 'when 
you have done so, I think you will find 
yourself delivered from all your troubles.' 

"I followed his advice. I went home and 
read the chapter to which he had referred 
me. I passed on, without difficulty, until 
I came to the twenty-second verse, £ For as 
in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all 
be made alive. 5 Beyond this I could not 
proceed. I choked up, and filled with tears. 
The word m, in Christ, struck my atten- 



16 MEMOIR OF 

tion, and I could not get over it. c It is in 
Christ, then/ said I to myself, i that those 
who are raised up to glory at last, are to be 
made alive! Ah! but am I in Christ?' 
was the thought that constantly recurred to 
me. ' It is in Christ only, that they shall 
be made alive. Every thing depends upon 
being in Christ. And am /, then, in Christ V 
At the same time, passage after passage 
kept pouring into my mind, from other 
parts of the Bible, confirming this view of 
the subject. It was in Christ, I clearly 
saw, that all were to be made alive who 
should reach the world of glory ; and as for 
myself, I was evidently not in him. This 
was the very passage, of all others, I sup- 
pose, upon which my Universalist friend 
had depended for my relief. He could not 
have pointed me to one that would have 
proved more fatal to my peace. God set it 
home to me. It stuck to me. The arrow 
of conviction quivered in my heart." 

And yet, after all, Mr. Lee continued to 
hold on to his old error, with the grasp of a 



ANDREW LEE. 17 

drowning man, as long as he could ; or if 
there were, at any time, a momentary re- 
lapse, he was soon found wandering away 
again, in the same paths in which he had 
been accustomed to stray, — so difficult is it 
to break up the habits of sin, and bring the 
heart back again to God. 

"I continued," says he, " notwithstand- 
ing my convictions, to converse about Uni- 
versalism, as I had done before, and treat 
it as the proper view of the gospel. In this 
way I could soothe my fears, and obtain 
some relief from the reproaches of my con- 
science." God, however, soon met with 
him again, in a manner which effectually 
demolished this refuge of lies in which he 
had so long endeavored to hide himself. 

In July, of the year 1826, he lost a brother 
of his wife, who died without hope. Call- 
ing on the family, soon afterwards, to 
sympathize with them in their sorrows, he 
introduced his favorite topic, by way of 
consolation. "Our friend has indeed gone," 

said he, " but then why should we mourn 

2# 



18 MEMOIR OF 

for him ? God is a God of mercy. He de- 
lights in exercising it. He made no person 
to be damned. He made all to be saved. 
I have not the least doubt of it. I fully 
believe that we shall all reach heaven in 
safety at last." There was a Mrs. D. pres- 
ent, who, when he had ended, undertook to 
reply. In so doing, she told him her own 
experience. u As for myself," said she, "I 
once tried hard to be a Universalis t, but my 
conscience would not let me. To believe 
the Bible and Universalism too, I found was 
a thing impossible. I believe, as well as you, 
that God is a God of mercy ; but then he is 
also a God of justice; and I have seen the 
time when I could rejoice in his justice and 
say, 'I will praise him, even though he 
should send me to hell.' Depend upon it, 
he will certainly punish the guilty. It is 
those only who repent of their sins, and 
yield obedience to his commandments, 
through the Lord Jesus Christ, that shall 
ever enter in through the gates into the 
city. All others shall be shut out of it 



ANDREW LEE. 19 

forever." " Why, Mrs. D," said he in reply, 
" if I should talk as you do, I should think I 
was an awful creature. You make God 
out to be an unmerciful and unjust Being, 
worse than we are, — to cast away the be- 
ings he has made, in hell." " And suppos- 
ing you should go to heaven," asked Mrs. 
D., "with this unsanc tilled heart: — would 
you be happy, shut up with Christians and 
confined altogether to their company, here 
on earth ?" " I do not know that I should 
be," was Mr. Lee's answer. "And how 
then could you possibly be happy, in hea- 
ven, with the same heart, and holy persons 
present,— all surrounded with the glory of 
God ? The heart, the heart, Mr. Lee, must 
be changed, before you can ever be happy, 
in a world of holiness. Have you nothing 
to say about a change of heart? How will 
you get rid of your wicked heart?" "With 
this," replied Mr. Lee, "I have nothing to 
do. This is God's affair, not mine. The 
great difficulty with you, in trying to be a 
Universalist, was, that you had no faith." 



20 MEMOIR OF 

" Indeed I had/' replied Mrs. D., "such a 
faith as the devils have. They believe in 
a Saviour and tremble at his name, but 
cannot love him ; and so did I. With them 
I could also say, ' I know thee, who thou 
art, the Holy One of God;' but here I was 
obliged to stop." 

In the course of her remarks, Mrs. D. il- 
lustrated, in her own case, the difference 
between that faith which works by love, 
and that which does not,— stating clearly 
also the reasons of the hope she then had, 
as to her good estate; and, at the same 
time, charging Mr. Lee to beware, lest the 
faith which he professed to have in the 
Lord Jesus Christ, should prove nothing 
more or less than a devil's faith. 

" In short," says Mr. Lee, " in what she 
said of herself, when trying to be a Univer- 
salist, there was an exact description of my 
own case. Every word was set home to 
my heart. I found that I had no other 
faith than the first kind of which she had 
spoken. It was nothing but the faith erf 



ANDREW LEE. 21 

devils. There was no love in it. The 
thought cut me to the quick. I left the 
house overwhelmed. Before I reached 
home, my Universalism was all swept 
away. My refuge of lies was no more to 
be found. Every ray of hope had vanished ; 
and I felt the burden of my sins increase 
heavily upon me. 

" From this time onward/ 7 continues Mr. 
Lee, " I determined to be no longer de- 
ceived by men. I would forsake every 
thing but my Bible. Whatever I heard 
preached, I resolved to try by the Word of 
God. I heard some Universalist Ministers ; 
but, for the most part, only Orthodox ; and 
I made the Bible the standard by which I 
tried all their preaching. It was not long, 
before I discovered where my difficulty 
lay. It was solely in the humbling doc- 
trines of the Bible. They condemned me 
as a lost sinner ; and, for salvation, re- 
quired me to bow at the foot of the Cross. 
This my stubborn heart could not bear. I 
tried every other way, therefore, to obtain 



22 MEMOIR OF 

rest for my soul; and became especially 
fascinated with the proffers and plausibili- 
ties of Universalism, until God, in his mer- 
cy, brought me to see my error." 

In this state of mind, Mr. Lee continued, 
for about a year, thoroughly weaned from 
his old views, but, as yet, definitely wed- 
ded to nothing new, in their stead. " I 
found myself," says he, u greatly perplex- 
ed as to what to fix upon for the truth, — 
there were so many denominations, all dif- 
fering from each other, and yet all claiming 
to be right." What unquestionably great- 
ly added to his perplexity, was the state of 
things, at this time, in the place. The 
church, at best, was small ; while religion 
itself was at a very low ebb ; and infidelity 
abounded, on every hand, — its advocates 
constantly holding meetings for the ad- 
vancement of their cause. He, however, 
who, in simplicity of heart, has resolved to 
take the Word of God for his guide, will 
soon find his way to the river of life. 

" While I was in this state of suspense," 



ANDREW LEE. 23 

says he, " a neighbor of mine, who had, 
for some time, entertained a faint hope, but 
who was himself a very timid man, called 
on me, in the shop where I worked, and 
wanted to know if I believed in the Bible, 
and proposed that we should have a meet- 
ing, at his house, that evening, if I remem- 
ber right, for the sake of conversing together 
about it. ' There is a large number among 
us,' said he, \ who deny it, and meet to- 
gether to ridicule it and all religion. Now, 
let us have a meeting, in order to read the 
Bible, and try to find out what it means. 
Come to my house, and invite as many 
others as you can, to come with you.' The 
proposition was agreed to ; and, on Tues- 
day evening of August the 7th, we held 
our first meeting. Only eight were present, 
all strangers to vital godliness, but my 
neighbor, — no one of whom, but we two, 
knew the object which had brought us to- 
gether. There was an infidel meeting, of 
thirty or forty in number, held at the same 
time, in another place. 



24 MEMOIR OF 

" At my friend's request, I stated the ob- 
ject of the meeting. i It was to examine 
the Bible. If it is true, let us know it. Let 
us read it, and find out what it is. If it 
contains the truth, let us receive it. If 
it is false, let us reject it.' All were 
pleased with the idea. At this meet- 
ing, after having read a chapter in the Bi- 
ble, this question was proposed, ■ Do we 
believe the Bible to be the Word of GodT 
Every one gave an answer in the affirma- 
tive. The question was then asked, ' Do 
we believe in the reality of experimental 
religion V Yes, was again the reply of all 
who were present. Having advanced thus 
far, we began to feel that something was 
wanting, to bring us to a saving knowledge 
of the truth. Prayers were spoken of; but 
none of us could pray. We resolved, there- 
fore, to conclude the meeting with singing, 
and to borrow Scott's Bible, for perusal, at 
our next meeting, which was appointed for 
the Tuesday evening following. We then 
separated." 

The above meeting was a very solemn 



ANDREW LEE. 25 

one, as the woman of the house was after- 
wards heard to remark, especially so, when 
it was discovered that not an individual 
present could lead in prayer, and it was 
agreed to substitute singing in its stead. 

When they came together again, they 
found their numbers had increased. They 
spent their time, as had been proposed, in 
pursuing their inquiries with the aid of 
Scott's Bible. As before, however, they 
were obliged to separate without prayer ; 
for the spirit of prayer had not yet been 
given. On breaking up, they agreed to in- 
vite their pastor to meet with them, the 
next week, in hopes that he would be able 
to scatter light in their path. As may be 
supposed, he was greatly rejoiced to re- 
ceive such an invitation. The report had 
already begun to be circulated through 
the town, that these men were seeking re- 
ligion ; and to produce the wonted excite- 
ment, among friends and foes. There was 
a good foundation for it. 

He found the room full of inquirers ; and 
3 



26 MEMOIR OF 

with the unspeakable delight of one, who 
had long wept between the porch and the 
altar, proceeded to tell them that it was the 
Spirit of God alone, which could enlighten, 
convince, and convert, — that they had been 
resorting to means and instruments, with- 
out looking to Him, unaided of whom, they 
could never be rendered effectual to salva- 
tion. 

The silent tear and heart-felt sigh were 
there, and declared in language louder than 
words, what was the state of feeling with- 
in.^ The same evening, there was another 
house near by, full of females, of all ages, 
but chiefly of the youngs begging for the 
prayers of God's children. 

The next meeting was held at the pas- 
tor's house, and was overflowing. The 
question was now freely asked, "What 
shall we do to be saved;" and directly, 
young converts were found rejoicing in the 
Saviour ; and among them, before the re- 



* See Boston Recorder, 1828, p. 129, 133. 



ANDREW LEE. 27 

vival closed, all the seven impenitent indi- 
viduals, of the first evening's meeting. Mr. 
Lee, although the earliest of the inquirers, 
was one of the last that obtained a hope. 
Take the following account of the matter, 
given chiefly in his own language. 

u As for myself/ 7 says he, " God again 
appeared for me, in the influences of his 
Holy Spirit, and aroused me to a sense of 
my danger, — laying open my heart, and 
showing me, every day, more and more of 
my miserable condition. My whole life 
was brought up before me. My guilt be- 
came increasingly obvious, and pressed 
with a heavier weight upon me. I saw 
clearly that I had lived only for my- 
self, and not at all for the glory of God ; 
and that, continuing thus, I must, in the 
end, perish with an everlasting destruc- 
tion. For a long time I stood it out, and 
sought relief from my woes, in endeavors 
to make myself better. It all, however, 
amounted to nothing. Like the woman in 
the Gospel, with an issue of blood, — after 



28 MEMOIR OF 

expending all 'my strength, I only found 
myself growing worse, and continued to 
go, day after day, mourning beneath the 
frown of God. At length there came the 
final struggle. 

" On the evening of the 12th of September, 
while I was in a very sorrowful frame, be- 
moaning my wretchedness, I betook my- 
self for comfort to my old resort, — the 
failings of Christians, — picking the best of 
them to pieces, and bringing out all their 
faults to view ; when suddenly the thought 
came rushing upon me, somewhat as it 
had often done before, only far more forci- 
bly, that all my trouble was imaginary, 
and wholly without foundation ; that I was, 
in reality, as good as professors, even the 
best of them, and should come out as well 
at last, and hence had no cause whatever 
for alarm. In an instant, all my fears 
vanished, and my soul became pacified." 

In this frame of mind he retired to rest, 
and soon fell asleep. Awaking, however, 
in the course of the night, he found himself 



ANDREW LEE. 29 

in the midst of all his old fears again. "I 
saw," says he, " that I had utterly de- 
ceived myself, the night before ; I felt that 
I was the greatest of offenders. ' What have 
you not done V said I to myself. My sins 
came rolling in upon me, like mountains, 
on every side. I perceived that the blame 
of every thing was entirely on my part. I 
could not but acknowledge that I was guil- 
ty and self-condemned, and that God, in 
all his ways and dealings with me, had 
been right. I saw, at once, that it would 
be perfectly holy and just in Him to 
condemn me, and cast me off forever. The 
discovery prostrated me in the dust before 
Him. I was overwhelmed with anguish 
of spirit, and felt that I was sinking right 
down into hell." 

In this frame of mind he arose out of his 
bed, and falling on his knees, called upon 
God to have mercy on him, the worst of 
sinners. He wrung his hands. His breast 
heaved. It seemed as if his body would be 
racked to pieces. His whole soul was in 
3* 



30 MEMOIR OF 

commotion. His wife greatly feared he 
was going distracted. "Oh," said he to 
her, " I must sink. I cannot stay here. 
This heavy load will crush me to perdi- 
tion. Can you not pray for me?" 

His wife did pray for him, and tried to 
calm his mind, — telling him to lie down 
again, and give himself away to Christ. 
These last words caught his attention, and 
kept running in his mind. " What, I give 
myself away to Christ, — I, a miserable, 
miserable wretch ?" There was something 
amazing in the thought. 

In this frame of mind he lay, until sud- 
denly the dark cloud dispersed from around 
him, and the love of God seemed to break 
in upon his soul. " Almost in an instant," 
continues he, " my burden had rolled off, 
and my fears vanished ; and I found my- 
self of a light and gladsome heart. The 
change greatly alarmed me. I leaped out 
of my bed, and having dressed, walked 
forth into the fields, to consider what it 
could mean. It was just the break of day. 



ANDREW LEE. 31 

With the change in myself, I found that 
every thing had changed in the world 
around me. I thought I heard the praise 
of God resounding from every quarter. 
My body itself seemed to have lost its 
heaviness, and to have become as light as 
a feather. I could leap as Christian did, 
when he had lost his burden at the sight 
of the cross." 

In very much this frame of mind, he en- 
tered upon the duties of the day. He had 
not, however, as yet, become fully per- 
suaded that he was born again. In- 
deed, he greatly feared he was deceiving 
himself with false hopes. These fears press- 
ing upon him, as he returned homeward to 
breakfast, he had thought of calling upon 
a Christian neighbor and telling her of the 
exercises he had gone through ; but neglect- 
ing to do so, he gradually fell into a state 
of gloom. " Towards night, in particular," 
says he, " I again found myself involved 
in trouble. My comfort vanished. A cloud 
of darkness came over me. Satan attacked 



32 MEMOIR OF 

me with great rage ; and the cry of ' De- 
lusion and vanity,' rung loudly in my 
ears. He was evidently loth to. give me 
up. I had been too faithful a servant in 
his cause for him readily to part with, and 
had done too much for the spread of Uni- 
versalism. For about half an hour, I was 
bowed down to the dust in great agony of 
soul." 

In this state of mind, as a last resort, he 
betook himself in prayer to God for relief; 
and soon afterwards it came. That evening 
there was an inquiry meeting at the pastor's 
house. Mr. Lee went to it, all weighed 
down with the burden of his sins, and a 
sense of his un worthiness. The hymn, 

" Salvation, oh the joyful sound," 

was given out and sung. It exactly met 
his case. It proved a cordial to his soul. 
When Mr. Emerson, about seven in the 
evening, asked him, in his turn, how he 
felt, he answered, " Happy, perfectly hap- 
py." " And how long have you felt so," 



ANDREW LEE. 33 

again asked Mr. Emerson. To which Mr. 
Lee replied, " Only since I have been in 
this room." Mr. Lee then arose and said : 
"I came here greatly burdened in my 
mind, — pressed down to the dust. I had 
felt the torments of hell, if any body can 
feel them here. While, however, they 
were singing that hymn, light broke in 
upon my mind. I felt, all at once, as 
though I could witness to it. The room 
became like a heaven on earth to my soul. 
My cup is full and running over. It is im- 
possible for me to find language to express 
the joys I feel, to think that to me, the least 
of all his creatures, God has deigned to 
show mercy !" He evidently spoke from 
his heart. The tears ran down his cheeks 
as he took his seat. There was not a dry 
eye in the room. Mr. Emerson himself 
was unable to speak for some minutes, 
through the intensity of his emotion. The 
first words that he did utter, as soon as he 
could command his voice, were, " Bless 
the Lord, O my soul." In giving me an 



34 MEMOIR OF 

account of himself, at this time, on his dy- 
ing bed, he said : 

" The love of God seemed to take me up 
.on its bosom, like a flood, and absolutely 
bear me away. I discovered such a reality 
in religion, that I could not disbelieve it. I 
thought I would hold on to it, should all 
the world deny it, and pronounce it false. 
I found the witness of the Spirit within 
me, that I was born of God, and had joy 
and peace in believing. I felt that if the 
old days of martyrdom should come back 
again, I could lie down in the fire and be 
burnt to ashes for the sake of Jesus Christ. 
With every breath I prayed the Lord to 
make me entirely his, and guide me into 
the paths of truth. I gave myself up to my 
Redeemer, in a new and everlasting cov- 
enant to be his for ever. I felt wholly dis- 
enthralled from sinful fears of every kind. 
The full sunshine of divine love poured 
down upon me. I have no language to ex- 
press what I felt. It was all unutterable. 
Nor did my peace and comfort vanish with 



ANDREW LEE. 35 

that occasion. For the space of three days, 
I continued to have great religious delight, 
and was altogether wrapped up in divine 
things, — the peace, love, and glory of God. 
Such was the commencement of my hopes 
and my fears as a Christian, — the dawning 
of divine life in my soul. From that time, 
the evening of September the 13th, 1827, 
I date my birth into the kingdom of God. 
From that spot, — the place where I sat, that 
evening, in my pastor's house, — I began 
my race for the crown of glory." 1 * 

Mr. Lee often referred to this occasion, 
with great interest, at subsequent periods 
of his life. " The very sight of the spot," 
he was wont to say, " has relieved me of 
my sorrow, in hours of spiritual darkness. 
I have frequently visited the room, in order 



* It can scarcely he doubted, that the change in Mr. Lee, 
really took place in the morning. The fears, however, with 
which it was accompanied, together with the darkness into 
which he soon fell, and the greater light and comfort that he 
experienced, in the evening, closed his eyes to the fact, and 
led him always to fix upon the latter occasion, as the date of 
his new birth. This is what I gathered from my own con- 
versation with him, on the subject. 



36 MEMOIR OF 

to look on it, at such seasons, for the sole 
purpose of obtaining consolation ; nor has 
the view, in general, failed to recall to my 
mind the hallowed enjoyments of that 
meeting, — increasing my faith, and open- 
ing for me afresh, the fountains of redeem- 
ing love." 

That to have such a man as Mr. Lee 
had been, become an inquirer with those 
who were asking in solemn earnest, 
" What shall we do to be saved," would 
excite great feeling in his former associates 
and friends, follows as a matter of course. 
Among others, that brother Universalist, 
above referred to, to whom he bad applied, 
on a certain occasion, for a solution of pain- 
ful doubts, took notice of his seriousness, 
and often called on him, at his shop, en- 
deavoring to dispel it. 

" Brother Lee," said he to him one day, 
soon after the commencement of the revi- 
val, "I hope you are not going to turn 
fool, to follow these fanatics!" "I shall 
follow them," replied Mr. Lee, " for in 



ANDREW LEE. 37 

my former belief, which was just as 
yours, I have never found any true happi- 
ness ; and if I do not find it now, I shall 
lose nothing." 

On the morning after Mr. Lee had been 
brought out, this old associate called on 
hirn again, at his shop, and began in the 
same strain of remarks as before, saying, 
" I have come to see you again, brother 
Lee." "Well;" replied Mr. Lee, " You 
have come too late. I have now got 
where I cannot go back. Blessed be God, 
I have now reached the rock. My feet are 
now planted on the Rock of Ages." His 
friend was struck with astonishment, and 
left him to visit him, on such errands, no 
more. Whether or not, Mr. Lee's feet had, 
at this time, actually reached the Rock re- 
ferred to, the sequel will probably enable 
us to determine. 



38 



MEMOIR OF 



CHAPTER II 



FROM HIS CONVERSION IN 1827, TO THE PERIOD OF 
MY OWN PERSONAL ACQUAINTANCE WITH HIM, 
IN 1839. 



SECTION FIRST. 

His profession of religion, walks of piety } 
correspondence, journal, fyc. 

Although Mr. Lee came out so clear and 
bright, yet he soon found himself plunged 
in darkness again, especially at times. He 
would go to meeting, indeed, and take part 
in exhortation and prayer, — saying nothing 
on the subject in public, — but on coming 
away, he would declare to a Christian 
brother, still living, who was much with 
him, that he had derived no comfort from 
so doing. For the space of six months, in 
particular, he often found himself, like his 



ANDREW LEE. 39 

predecessor and relative, Mr. Edward Lee,^ 
"in the very belly of hell." His heart, as 
he has since often declared to his intimate 
friends, would seem to overflow with wick- 
edness. He was greatly troubled, like John 
Bunyan, with blasphemous thoughts, that 
struggled for vent, and had to put his hands 
on his mouth and bury up his face, in 
order to prevent them from leaping out, in 
the most horrible language. In this state 
of mind, it is no wonder, that he long hesi- 
tated as to presenting himself for examina- 
tion, preparatory for admission to the 
church. Meeting after meeting was held, 
towards the close of the year, for hearing 
the experience of candidates, at which 
many others presented themselves, but still 
Mr. Lee, who came out so bright, was not 
there. When the time arrived, his wife 
would say to him, " Are you going to the 
meeting, my dear, this evening? 77 To 



* See Publications American Tract Society, Vol. XL, No. 
379. This expression of Mr. Edward Lee, however, has not 
been retained in the tract. 



40 MEMOIR OF 

which he would answer, " No. I thought," 
as he has since told the facts to young- 
converts in similar circumstances, " that I 
was doing right. I had Scripture to sustain 
me. The words, ' better not to vow, than 
to vow and not perform,' were continually 
sounding in my ears." It is evident, how- 
ever, after all, that he had seasons of sweet 
communion with God, and moments of great 
internal peace and consolation. Withal, 
whatever darkness he felt, he showed, in all 
his conduct, that he was entirely a new 
man. As a general thing, he went right to 
work, as if he had something to do — erect- 
ing the domestic altar, exhorting sinners to 
repentance, uniting with the brethren in 
social meetings, and, in short, consecrating 
himself, at once, to the advancement of the 
Redeemer's kingdom, in the little circle of 
his acquaintance. It was impossible for 
him to refrain from telling others, what the 
Lord had done for his soul, and endeavor- 
ing to bring them to become partakers of 
the same wonderful love. 



ANDREW LEE. 41 

Under the influence of these feelings, we 
find him immediately uniting with the 
young converts, and the brethren of the 
church, in setting up a Tuesday evening 
meeting for prayer and other religious ex- 
ercises ; and also a similar meeting, for an 
hour, every day, immediately after dinner. 

The most marked circumstance of his 
life, however, at this time, was an intimacy 
which he formed with Mr. Forster Allen, 
who, with his wife, had been hopefully 
converted, in the same revival. He has 
left us no note of the fact himself. He 
used, however, often to speak of it, in later 
years, as one of the most important events 
in his religious history. They covenanted 
together, somewhat after the manner of 
Messrs. Parsons and Fisk,^ to give them- 
selves away to each other as Christians. 
His friend, Mr. F. A., speaks of it thus: 
" My good brother Andrew Lee and my- 
self agreed to keep company during our 



* See Morton's Memoir of Parsons, 2d Edit. p. 159. 

4# 



42 MEMOIR OF 

pilgrimage, in order that we might the bet- 
ter find our way through this wilderness 
world, help bear each other's burdens, and 
the more successfully war against sin. We 
have therefore embraced every opportunity 
to meet together, and unite in prayer and 
conversation on the things of the kingdom." 

It was to be expected that two such 
friends would prove faithful to the meet- 
ings which they had aided in establishing. 
They continued the Tuesday evening meet- 
ing, even after it was reduced from fifteen 
or twenty, to four or five ; and often, in 
times of coldness, they and their wives 
were all that attended. 

Nor less faithful did they prove to the 
meeting of an hour every day. At the end 
of six months, the brethren had gradually 
withdrawn from it. Mr. Lee, however, 
and his friend, always, it is believed, at- 
tended it, when it was possible. At least, 
in the latter part of their lives, they were 
in the habit of meeting together, almost 



ANDREW LEE. 43 

every day, immediately after dinner, for 
religious purposes. 

" We made it our rule," Mr. Lee used to 
say, when speaking of the subject, " to 
despatch whatever worldly business we 
had, as soon as possible, and then to apply 
ourselves, at once, to the subject of re- 
ligion." No one can doubt that these 
were very profitable seasons to their souls. 

At length the moment had arrived, when 
Mr. Lee must either decide to come for- 
ward and make a profession of religion, or 
else find himself left behind, of many whom 
he loved. The last meeting for the exami- 
nation of candidates had been appointed. 
His wife, in reply to her usual question, 
had received the customary answer, " No," 
and left him alone. He still felt that it 
was better for him not to vow, than to vow 
and not perform. The Scriptures told him 
so. He would therefore remain as he was. 
Not many minutes, however, had elapsed, 
before he began to suspect that he was 
wrong. " Better not to vow, than to vow 



44 MEMOIR OF 

and not perform ? And what then? Is it 
not my duty to vow, and to perform my 
vows ? Most surely it is ; and, with the 
help of God, I will do it. In a word, I 
found I had allowed myself to be deceived 
by the suggestions of Satan. I therefore 
immediately seized my hat, and went out 
to the meeting." 

The result was, that on the 6th of Janu- 
ary, 1828, Mr. Lee, in connection with his 
friend, and more than seventy others, came 
forward and gave themselves away in pub- 
lic, to be the Lord's, forever. 

In illustration of what has now been 
said, I will present such brief documents 
as I have been able to find. An extract 
from a letter to his relatives in Portland, 
Me., the only one of this period that I have 
been able to recover, will show the early 
state of his religious feelings, and his inter- 
est for souls. It has lost its date, but must 
have been written not long after his con- 
version. 



ANDREW LEE. 45 

" Dear Brother, Sister, and Friends, 

" There is a great revival in this place; 
Sister C. and myself, as we trust, have ex- 
perienced what it is to be born again ; and 
I wish you were all here, to share in the 
work. I had gone far astray, and long de- 
luded myself by thinking that every thing 
would come out well with me, at last. 
Wretch that I was, — I gave God the lie, 
crying out, i Peace and safety] — when 
he says, that ' without holiness no man 
shall see the Lord,' and most solemnly as- 
sures us, that i except we are born of 
water, and of the Spirit, we cannot enter 
into the kingdom of God. 5 

" And now, my dear friends, if you are 
still destitute of religion, I entreat you to 
go about the work of seeking it immedi- 
ately. If you leave the world, having no 
interest in Christ, there is nothing but an 
eternity of misery before you. Delay then, 
attending to this great salvation, no longer ; 
for time is short and very uncertain. Read 
your Bible and see what it requires of you. 



46 MEMOIR OF 

Repent and believe in the Lord Jesus 
Christ, that your sins may be blotted out. 
I can recommend religion to you all. From 
it I have derived the only true comfort 
and happiness I have ever had, in all my 
life. There is a reality in it. The terms 
it proposes, are not hard ; while it promises 
every thing that is good for us here, — the 
only real happiness there is to be obtain- 
ed, — and life and eternal joy hereafter. 
You have lived long enough, my brother, 
to know that whatever the world promises, 
in respect to happiness, it always fails of 
the performance, — that there is no true sat- 
isfaction to be derived from it, or any thing 
that it gives, without religion, — that it is 
this alone, which sweetens every thing, and 
lays a foundation for lasting bliss. Do not 
delay this great subject, I entreat you, any 
longer; for delays are very dangerous. It 
is true you have long grieved away the 
Holy Spirit ; but even after so long a time, 
it is said, £ To-day, if ye will hear his 
voice, harden not your hearts.' Think, O 



ANDREW LEE. 47 

think, my dear brother and sister, of your 
never dying souls ! God can reach you by 
the influences of his Holy Spirit, where 
you are, even if there be no revival, as well 
as here. Do not grieve him away. Every 
setting sun utters a warning voice, and tells 
of a long, an endless eternity ! Delay not 
to prepare for eternity ! 

u As for you. my dear mother, I can re- 
joice with you, in the goodness of God. 
Though we have trials here, they will only 
make us the richer hereafter. And then, 
in the midst of them, we know where to go 
for relief; for Christ calls us to put our 
trust in him. Cast all your cares on him, 
my dear mother, for he careth for you. 
Lift up your head and rejoice, for all things 
work together for good to those who love 
God. Read we not, that those who sur- 
round the throne, came out of great tribu- 
lation? Rejoice, then, my dear mother, for 
if we only prove faithful, we shall soon 
leave this troublesome world, and join the 



48 MEMOIR OF 

assembly around the throne, there to spend 
a long eternity, in praising God and the 
Lamb. 

" Yours in affection and love, 

A. L." 

Of himself and his religious associates, 
during this period, and for some time after- 
wards,— for the writing is without date, — 
Mr. Lee holds the following language : 

" Soon after we had been hopefully con- 
verted to the Lord, and while we were re- 
joicing in all the fervor of our first love, a 
number of us set up a prayer meeting > for 
every Tuesday evening. We also met to- 
gether, from day to day, for the purpose of 
reading the Bible, praying, and relating to 
each other, any new discoveries we had 
made, in our travels. We enjoyed the pres- 
ence of God much, in these exercises. We 
found it good to draw near to a throne of 
grace. Thus we went on together, for a 
while, increasing in strength. Brighter 



ANDREW LEE. 49 

prospects were constantly opening around 
us. Every thing was glorious to behold. 
It is painful, however, to think what a 
change gradually succeeded. One by one 
grew remiss, became cold, and dropped 
away from our meetings, until, in a little 
while, only a few were left. Soon the lan- 
guage of Canaan itself began to be forgot- 
ten, and, in spiritual things, we became 
strangers to each other. 

u As for myself, during this period, — my 
neglect of duty, especially in not laboring 
for souls, so far as I could, often involved 
me in darkness. Thanks to God, however, 
whose mercy endureth forever ; he did not 
leave me entirely to my own ways. He 
continued to hold on to me, notwithstand- 
ing my sins ; and to refresh me with his 
Holy Spirit. I often enjoyed his presence, 
and could draw near to the mercy-seat, in 
prayer. There were times in which I 
found the Saviour very precious to my soul, 
and experienced the joys of his salvation. 
On various occasions, I felt strong desires 
5 



50 MEMOIR OF 

for the conversion of sinners; and could 
warn them, with much freedom, to flee 
from the wrath to come; and could tell 
them of the great redemption, through 
Christ; God so assisting me, — animating 
my heart with his love, and rendering his 
word plain to my understanding, — as alto- 
gether filled me with surprise. Especially 
did I find the Lord with me, at different 
times, in my visits to the sick and dying. 
From such scenes I derived much to quick- 
en my lukewarm soul. The Lord thus 
enabled me to say, from my own experi- 
ence, ! It is better for me to go to the house 
of mourning, than to the house of feasting.' 
" Such is a brief outline of the dealings of 
the Lord with me, for some months after I 
was brought to taste of his love. Hard- 
hearted and rebellious as I have been, he 
has continued to bear with me, and refresh 
me with his gracious presence. What shall 
I render to him for all his benefits ! The 
constant language of my soul, is, i Let 
every thing that hath breath, praise the 
Lord.' » 



ANDREW LEE. 51 

From this time onward, for several years, 
all that we know of Mr. Lee's spiritual 
condition and progress, is, that he was 
heartily engaged as a teacher in the Sab- 
bath school, and continued to prove faithful 
to his master's service, so far as could be 
judged externally, in other respects. 

In 1832, he began to keep a journal of his 
religious exercises ; so that we find land- 
marks for our guidance. This step was 
probably the result of an agreement to this 
effect, between himself and his friend ; for 
they both began to journalize, about the 
same time. He introduces the subject with- 
out date, but probably sometime in July, 
as follows : 

" I feel that I have neglected my duty in 
not recording, from day to day, what the 
Lord has done for me, since I enlisted in 
his service, and purpose a change. But 
where shall I begin % Paper would fail me, 
and rivers of ink, before I could recount 
half the mercies I have received from his 



52 MEMOIR OF 



hands. O praise the Lord, ye children of 
men." 



The spring of this year, as it seems, com- 
menced with favorable appearances of a 
revival in the church. A prayer meeting 
was set up, on Sabbath morning; Christians 
seemed much engaged ; and impenitent sin- 
ners become unusually attentive. Withal, 
the judgments of the Lord were abroad in 
the earth. In the course of the summer, 
the cholera reached our continent, and be- 
gan to sweep down its thousands. The 
19 th of July was set apart by the church 
as a day of prayer and fasting, that God 
would stay this pestilence. There were 
other circumstances, too, calculated to fill 
the mind with great solemnity. All hope- 
ful appearances, however, vanished ; and 
gradually a decline succeeded. Mr. Lee 
has summed up the matter, as follows : 

" In the spring of this year, I felt deeply 
anxious for the salvation of my fellow 



ANDREW LEE. 53 

creatures. The Lord appeared to be with 
us, by his Holy Spirit. Christians seemed 
in part to be aroused to a sense of their 
duty. Our prayer meetings became full 
and interesting. Every thing, in short, in- 
dicated the approach of a revival. Little 
distractions, however, gradually crept in, to 
disturb us, until our meetings became thin 
again. Christians fell asleep in their sins 
as before, and the Holy Spirit was entirely 
grieved away. We heard even, of the judg- 
ments of God being abroad in the land, 
taking off many of its inhabitants ; and yet 
continued to slumber on, as if every thing 
had been peace and safety. As for myself, 
at this time, — I must say that I had my 
views of the goodness of God enlarged. I 
enjoyed the divine presence. I often re- 
ceived refreshings from the heavenly world, 
and tasted of redeeming love, in all its 
purity. I heard even, of the pestilence cut- 
ting down its thousands, without fear. I 
could not but regard myself as safe, in the 

hands of him who rules over all ; and I 
5# 



54 MEMOIR OF 

felt in hopes that the people would learn 
righteousness from the displays of his in- 
dignation. Alas, however, the depravity 
of man ! The human heart did not melt. 
The world continued to roll on in sin, as 
before. How great is the mercy of God, 
that bears with such obstinacy, and en- 
dures such amazing guilt !" 

Sometime in the autumn of this year, he 
writes as follows : 

"On the night of September the 12th, 
there was a heavy frost ; and it appeared 
as if the corn would be cut off, — in conse- 
quence of which, the world stole in upon 
me ; and darkness, doubts, and fears suc- 
ceeded. At times, indeed, I could escape 
from all my perplexing cares, in the enjoy- 
ment of the presence of God. Still my 
heart, in general, was full of distrust. The 
Lord, however, has promised that there 
shall be a seed time, and a harvest ; and I 
found him far better than my fears. The 



ANDREW LEE. 55 

harvest did not fail. There was a plenty. 
In all this, I discerned the over-ruling 
hand of God. He would show us our de- 
pendence on him. The world will always 
disappoint those who put their confidence 
in it. It has nothing but husks for the 
hungry soul. Christ and his salvation are 
worth the whole universe besides ; for to 
know him is life everlasting. Alas, that I 
should so often grieve away the Spirit of 
God, promising myself to do better for the 
future, but when the time arrives, relaps- 
ing into the same fault ! Could I treat an 
earthly friend as unkindly as I treat my 
forbearing Saviour?" 

In December of this year, Mr. Lee was 
called to severe family trials. He had a 
little daughter, a child of much promise, — 
full of sprightliness, a faithful member of 
the Sabbath school, — and one, withal, that 
had exhibited the feelings of a Christian, 
quite from her infancy. Of course, she was 
a favorite with her parents. This child 



56 MEMOIR OF 

was unexpectedly removed out of time 
into eternity. 

Scarcely had her remains been laid in 
the grave, before his next daughter was 
also seized with the same disorder, and 
brought to the very gates of death. 

Mr. Lee was at first greatly bowed down 
under his affliction. He found it especially 
hard to part with Fanny, as she was called, 
and seemed almost to murmur against the 
hand of God, in the dispensation. The 
sickness of his next daughter brought him 
to the mercy-seat, in earnest prayer. Soon 
after, all his turbulent feelings had van- 
ished, and he was found rejoicing in divine 
love. Indeed he had an ecstacy of religious 
delight, which it is difficult to describe. 
He said he had made an idol of this little 
one; and that God had taken her away 
from him, in order that he himself might 
be substituted in her place: and that he 
could give glory to God for having done it. 
Through all the remaining scene of that 
trial, he seems to have had the light of 



ANDREW LEE. 57 

God's countenance. In the midst of her 
disease, Elizabeth was found very anxious 
for her soul. She called her father to her, 
and said to him, among other things, u Fa- 
ther, where is Jesus ? I want to go to Jesus. 
Take me up and carry me to Jesus." He 
accordingly knelt down by her bed-side, 
and prayed for her, with a resignation and 
fervor that seemed superhuman, — passing, 
as it were, during the exercise, from earth 
to heaven. The result was, that he receiv- 
ed an inward assurance, as he thought, 
that the life of his child would be spared to 
him ; and obtained evidence which he was 
never afterwards willing to relinquish, that 
she was born of God. Of the whole afflic- 
tion, Mr. Lee has himself given the follow- 
ing account. 

"On Sunday evening, December the 2d, 
my child Fanny, in the tenth year of 
her age, was taken sick of the throat dis- 
temper, of which disease she constantly 
grew worse, until the Wednesday follow- 
ing, at one o'clock in the afternoon, when 



58 MEMOIR OF 

she died. The event came very suddenly 
upon me, and almost overwhelmed me 
with grief. I found my heart was fixed 
on the world, and could not, without severe 
anguish, be torn from its hold. For a while, 
I thought my body would sink down into 
the earth. I was full of stubbornness, and 
did not go to God as I ought, — bowing 
down before him in prayer, and giving 
myself up, in resignation, to his holy will. 
In this unhappy frame of mind, I attended 
the funeral. On my way homeward from 
the grave, I began to receive something 
like spiritual comfort. My heart, however, 
was still too much on the world. I was 
far from being as reconciled to the dispen- 
sation, as became a Christian. 

In this condition, I found myself, on, the 
evening of this day, when Elizabeth, my 
next child, in the twelfth year of her age, 
was seized with the same disorder. This 
wrung me anew with anguish. It brought 
me to the mercy-seat, in more earnest 
prayer, for the light of God's countenance. 



ANDREW LEE. 59 

Nor was my cry in vain. Soon the dark 
cloud broke away, and the Sun of Righte- 
ousness shone down upon me. All my 
sorrows vanished. My broken heart was 
bound up. Love and joy poured in like a 
flood upon my soul. I felt a calmness and 
resignation to the divine will, beyond any 
thing I had ever before experienced. I 
saw clearly that God is a God of great 
goodness and mercy. I became wholly 
absorbed in the glory of his name. It 
seemed to me that to wish my child back 
again, would be to stand in the door-way 
of heaven, and prevent her from enter- 
ing into rest ; for I felt assured that God had 
taken her home to himself. 

" Nor less comforting did I find the pres- 
ence of God in respect to Elizabeth. She 
continued to grow worse, until the symp- 
toms of death made their appearance. Her 
tongue stiffened, her eyes grew dim, her 
feet became cold. The dying quiver passed 
over her frame. To all human view she 
was gone. God, however, who says to the 



60 MEMOIR OF 

proud ocean, i Thus far shalt thou come 
and no farther/ put under her, his almighty 
arm for support. The crisis of the disease 
passed, and she began to recover. In the 
course of that day, she wanted to see me 
alone. I went into her chamber, when she 
took me by the hand, and wished to know 
where she could find Jesus. Poor child ! 
She had been groaning through all her 
sickness, under a sense of her sins. We 
had mistaken her feelings. We supposed 
she had been grieving, on account of the 
death of her sister, when she had been 
weighed down with a sense of her lost con- 
dition, without a hope in Christ. She look- 
ed up to God in supplication, and entreated 
him to have mercy on her soul. She re- 
quested me to pray for her. We united 
together in our cries to the Holy One, and 
received an answer of peace. All, we felt, 
was well. 

" As for myself, — my heart was filled with 
divine consolation, and I could not forbear 
crying out, ' glory to God.' 



ANDREW LEE. 61 

" Through all our trials, indeed, at this 
time, we found ourselves sustained by our 
heavenly Father. We had had great fears 
as to what we should do for help, in case of 
sickness. All our fears, however, proved 
groundless. The Lord seemed to move 
every heart for our aid. We had no oc- 
casion even to send out for it. Our neigh- 
bors would come and offer us their servi- 
ces. The banner of redeeming love was 
evidently over us. Our strength was made 
equal to our day, according to the divine 
promise. Thus true it is, that God bears 
his children on his heart. Their weeping 
endures but for a night. Joy comes in the 
morning. Oh, what shall I render to God, 
for all his goodness ! 

"I continue to find access to the mercy- 
seat; and enjoy great freedom in prayer. 
My strong desire is to see a revival in this 
place, and my impenitent friends flocking 
to the Lord Jesus Christ. ' ; 

December 16th, he continues : " Our trials 
had not yet closed, when I last wrote. 
6 



62 MEMOIR OF 

Since then, Adeliza has been sick, and no 
sooner had she recovered, than Andrew 
was taken very violently. We felt, how- 
ever, that we could resign ourselves into 
the hands of God, trusting to the fulfillment 
of his promise, never to leave or forsake his 
dear children. Nor have we done so, in 
vain. He has given us that support, which 
the world could not give. As for myself, — 
I have now been deprived, for four Sab- 
baths, of the privilege of going to meeting. 
The Spirit of God, however, is not con- 
fined. We can enjoy his presence, any 
where, if our hearts are only right. I con- 
tinue to feel the calmness of divine love ; 
though my mind is still too much on the 
world." 



SECTION SECOND. 
Extracts from his journal continued. 

January 6th, 1833. Have visited the 
sick, during the week past. Found two 
persons happy in their minds, and obtained 



ANDREW LEE. 63 

some comfort to my own soul. To day- 
has been a heart-searching time for me, — 
being communion Sabbath, and the first in 
the year. How ought my cold and sluggish 
heart to melt down under the goodness of 
God, in still sparing my life. Find conso- 
lation, however, in looking to Christ, as an 
all sufficient Saviour. Feel that I prize his 
religion above all things, and can give up 
every earthly delight for the consolation it 
affords. This evening have visited a sick 
woman. She is inquiring what she shall 
do to be saved. Conversed with her re- 
specting the great salvation through Christ, 
and prayed with her, and felt much free- 
dom, in drawing near to a throne of grace, 
in her behalf. The exercise brought me 
into a state of sweet peace and comfort, — 
to God be all the glory ! 

January 13th. Found myself drawn out 
in strong desires, to day, to meet with the 
people of God. Of course, the text, " As 
the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so 
panteth my soul after thee, O God," Ps. 



64 MEMOIR OF 

42: 1, was exactly what I wanted. The 
week past, however, with me, has been one 
of great stupidity. O how forgetful I am, 
of the divine goodness and mercy ! Behold, 
O God, our shield, and, looking upon the 
face of thine anointed, forgive my luke- 
warmness in thy service. 

January 20th. Had a week of tolerable 
comfort, and felt a nearness to God in 
prayer. Visited some sick friends, and was 
much refreshed. The house of mourning 
is far better than the house of feasting. 
Blessed be God that I can rejoice with 
them that do rejoice, and weep with them 
that weep. 

February 3d. Have enjoyed the meeting 
very much, to-day. The truth has been 
delivered. I wonder the world cannot dis- 
cover they are wrong, and that without 
holiness, no man can see the Lord ! Went 
again to visit the sick; found comfort in 
inviting them to Christ, and experienced 
freedom of prayer in their behalf. I feel 
a love for the whole human family. It is 



ANDREW LEE. 65 

painful, however, to think we have no 
meetings through the week. The soul 
needs food as much as the body. My spirit 
languishes for the nourishment she receives, 
on such occasions. 

February 17th. Went to meeting, in the 
afternoon, and heard a faithful sermon. 
Would fain live a life of more holiness. 
" O, for a closer walk with God ! " 

I wantt o meet with Christians daily ; wish 
they would assemble together for religious ex- 
ercises oftener. I long for that happy world, 

" Where congregations ne'er break up, 
And Sabbath's never end." 

February 24th. Feel, as yet, that I prize 
the religion of Jesus Christ above every thing. 
Have not, however, had my usual religious 
enjoyment to-day, — too heavy and cold, — 
wandering out of the good old path, — 

" Prone to leave the God I love." 
Great is his long suffering and mercy, or I 
should long since have been cut down as a 
cumberer of the ground. My sole depend- 
ed 



66 MEMOIR OF 

ence is on the Holy Spirit. May I never 
grieve it away by unfaithfulness. 

March 10th. No meeting to day. Read 
the Bible, and felt a great love for the 
Word. Can say it is better than my daily 
food. Found it sweet to commune with 
God. Have also had a good degree of re- 
ligious enjoyment through the week. O 
the divine goodness ! 

March 17th. Have had a solemn, a 
heart-searching day. Feel, however, that I 
love him who has become the end of the 
law for righteousness to every one that be- 
lieveth. Have visited the sick, and had 
freedom in praying with them. Find that 
the religion of Jesus is the one thing need- 
ful for all who are on a sick, or a dying 
bed. Some, while in health, are at ease in 
respect to it ; and others ridicule it, or treat 
it with contempt. Few, however, are will- 
ing to leave the world without it. Lord, 

" Why was I made to hear thy voice. 
And enter, while there's room ; 
When thousands make a wretched choice, 
And rather starve, than come?" 



ANDREW LEE. 67 

Saturday eve. Went to a prayer-meet- 
ing; one brother and about twenty sis- 
ters were present; to our bodily eyes, 
few in number ; but to the eye of faith, a 
whole army ; for I felt that God was there, 
by his Spirit ; and the angels too, as minis- 
tering spirits, sent forth to minister for 
them who shall be heirs of salvation. To 
me it was a good meeting. My soul was 
refreshed. I tasted, as I feel, the joys of 
salvation. To God be all the glory ! 

April 7th. Have lived in great coldness, 
the week past, if it can be called living. 
To-day, also, have been troubled with sin- 
gular hardness of heart, and much wan- 
dering of the thoughts. We have had 
good preaching, but my mind has seemed 
closed against it ; and I have not derived 
from it my usual comfort. The fault, 
however, is mine; for the Saviour says, 
" Behold, I stand at the door, and knock; 
if any man hear my voice, and open the 
door, I will come in to him, and will sup 
with him, and he with me. 7 ' 



68 MEMOIR OF 

April 21st. Have heard two excellent 
sermons, and enjoyed the day. It has been 
a precious Sabbath. This evening, we have 
also had a third discourse, respecting the 
greatness and the condescension of God. I 
have also visited Mrs. L., on a dying bed. 
Found her very comfortable in her mind, — 
longing to be absent from the body, and 
present with the Lord. It fills me with 
reproach to see the goodness of God to her, 
and the divine support she receives, as she 
draws near the grave. Indeed, I have no 
inclination for sleep to night. O, I long for 
that Sabbath which will never end. We 
have no meetings during the week, — the 
consequence of which, is, that I get drawn 
away into the world. As soon as I enter 
a meeting, the fire begins to burn in my 
heart. I feel unusually assisted in holding 
religious conversation with my family, and 
experience greater nearness of access to 
God in prayer, than I have done in times 
past. 



ANDREW LEE. 69 

May 26th. Detained at home, to-day, 
by sickness. Nevertheless, have had a 
good degree of religious calmness ; and felt, 
I think, as though I could say, a The 
will of the Lord be done." I greatly miss, 
however, the privilege of meeting with the 
children of God, in his house of prayer, 
and engaging in the Sabbath school. 
Thanks be to God that I experience such 
a love for his people, and the praise of his 
great and holy name. Religion is at a very 
low ebb among us, — none inquiring after 
the way of salvation. I have myself been 
very cold through the week. Our Saturday 
evening meeting, however, was a good one. 
Only few attended ; but I felt the Saviour 
was there, according to his promise. 

June 16th. Feel refreshed by the exer- 
cises of the Sabbath : but fear I am like the 
stony ground hearers. Before the week is 
out, I lose it all. O for that Sabbath which 
will never end, and that society which is 
holy, all whose motives are love. 



70 MEMOIR OF 

June 30th. Have had faithful preaching, 
to-day; but heard it with great coldness 
and indifference. O, that eternity, eternity, 
might be deeply impressed on my mind, — 
arousing me, by the help of God, so to or- 
der my walk, and conversation, that it may 
become a happy eternity for my soul ! 

Preparatory Lecture, Friday. Had some 
realizing sense of the goodness of God to 
me, in convicting me of sin, and bringing 
me to taste the joys of his salvation. 

" O, to grace, how great a debtor, 
Daily I'm constrained to be !" 

Saturday eve. Have enjoyed the week 
past. Had a good meeting, this even- 
ing. No brother attended; but felt great 
freedom, myself. God was present. There 
was verily a confirmation of his promise, 
"Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." 
My own soul was refreshed. Blessed be 
God, I never knew his word fail. Always, 
when I can draw near to him, feeling my 
dependence upon him, I find him drawing 



ANDREW LEE. 71 

near to me, and filling my heart with love, 
joy, and peace. I always get richly paid 
for going to meeting. Christ, I feel, is pre- 
cious. I want to live for God. 

July 7th. Attended communion. Had 
good faithful preaching, and a comfortable, 
but a heart-searching, a trying day. Can 
say, however, u Lord, thou knowest that I 
love thee." I love the cause of Christ; I 
love the souls of impenitent sinners ; I pray 
the Lord to have mercy on them ; I long 
for a revival of religion ; I want to hear my 
impenitent friends inquiring what they 
shall do to be saved, and see them flocking 
to Christ. 

July 21st. Sick, and detained from meet- 
ing. Find it a great privilege to go with 
the people of God, to the house of prayer. 
My weeks, I see, are flying, — bringing me 
nearer to eternity, — to a judgment day. O 
solemn thought ! Am I prepared ? I am a 
sinner, but Christ died for the chief of sin- 
ners. My hope is in his atoning blood. 
God grant I may be found in Christ, and 



72 MEMOIR OF 

he be formed in me, the only hope of glory. 
Lord Jesus, help me to love thee more, and 
to serve thee better. 

August 11th. During most of the week 
past, have been tried as to whether it is not 
my duty to go to every meeting, and warn 
impenitent sinners to flee from the wrath to 
come, — telling them what Christ has done 
for my soul, and is ready to do for theirs, 
if they will only come to him. Many of 
the brethren excuse themselves from at- 
tending these meetings, for years; or, if 
they ever go to them, they never open 
their mouths in prayer or warning to their 
impenitent friends, on such occasions. After 
thinking the subject over, however, with 
great anxiety, I have made up my mind in 
regard to it. I have resolved to look to 
God, asking him to lead me by his Spirit 
into the way he would have me go ; and 
enable me to deny myself, taking up my 
cross daily and following Jesus Christ. 

August 18th. Have enjoyed the Sab- 
bath, and had the presence of God more 



ANDREW LEE. 73 

than ordinary, in the exercise of family 
prayer. Felt that God did hear me, and 
would answer my requests, granting me 
the desires of my heart. Blessed be God, 
for the encouragement he affords us, to call 
on his holy name. 

Sept. 1st. Communion Sabbath. Am this 
day 43 years old. How short the time ap- 
pears ! And where will forty-three years more 
find me % In heaven, or in hell ? That is for 
me to say. Am I then a follower of Jesus or 
not ? Have old things passed away ? Have 
I become a new creature in Christ Jesus ? 
Do I hate sin ? Do I love holiness ? Do I 
come up to God's standard of duty? Do I 
believe with all my heart ? Lord help me 
to believe, — granting me thy Holy Spirit, 
to assist my infirmities. Long life I do not 
so much desire, as to spend my time on 
earth for the glory of God. O lead me, 
heavenly-Father, in the way thou wouldest 
have me go. Teach me what will be most 
for thy glory, in upbuilding the Redeemer's 
kingdom. Give me a heart at all times 
7 



74 



MEMOIR OF 



ready for thy service. Help me to yield 
obedience to all the commands of the Lord 
Jesus Christ, — following him through evil 
report, as well as through good report. 

Tuesday, September 10th. Have had 
much enjoyment to-day, and found the 
Saviour precious, while calling on my sick 
friends. Find all wanting an interest in 
Christ; and the inquiry of one is, "what 
shall I do to be saved?' 7 My heart rejoices 
for this one. May it prove but the begin- 
ning of a work of grace among us. This 
evening we have again set up our Tuesday 
evening prayer meeting, and had a refresh- 
ing season. I would fain hold the world 
around me, as a loose garment, that I can 
slip off, and get away from, at any mo- 
ment. 

September 15 th. Had three good ser- 
mons from Mr. A. of G. He seemed to be 
preaching especially to me. He singled me 
out, and told me I had not been faithful, 
either to myself, my family, my neighbors, 



ANDREW LEE. 75 

or to the God whom I profess to serve. I 
felt it. I am verily guilty. 

Tuesday. Parted with Miss C. P., to- 
day, in death. Truly life is a vapor, that 
appeareth, for a little while, and then van- 
isheth away. There is nothing here worth 
my stay, but the service of God. Blessed 
be his name, that he has furnished us with 
the means of reaching heaven ; and there 
is the voice still calling after us, "Look 
unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of 
the earth.' 7 Have had a pleasant meeting, 
this evening, and a week of tolerable com- 
fort, thus far. 

October 6th, Sunday. I find my mind 
wandering. Doubts and fears arise. Clouds 
and darkness cover me. O the depths of 
depravity in this heart ! I feel that I am a 
sinner. I long to be delivered from my 
sins. I greatly desire to live more holy, 
more devoted to God. For this, I know of 
no other way than to run to Jesus Christ. 
And blessed be God, that through him the 
way of salvation is open for such sinners as 



76 MEMOIR OF 

I am. We can all come to him. His 
blood cleanseth from all sin. 

October 29th. Have, of late, been reading 
John Bunyan's Holy War. It is one of the 
best of books, and exactly depicts my own 
case. As it was with Mansoul, so it is 
with me. I am full of Diabolonians, — a 
hellish crew, — that keep me from him whom 
I love. O come, Lord Jesus, and set up 
thy kingdom in my heart. Rule in me, 
and reign over me. Deliver me from these 
Diabolonians, that I perish not. I am in- 
sufficient of myself. My help, O Lord, 
must come from thee. 

November 3d. We have no meetings 
through the week. All is dull. Sin abounds. 
Infidelity is fast on the increase. I go 
groaning, day after day, exclaiming, "O 
what can I do, for the spiritual interests of 
my fellow creatures !' J My constant prayer 
is, u O God, pour out thy Spirit upon us. 
Without that, nothing can be done. Help 
Lord, for help must come from thee." 

November 10th. I long for a revival. I 



ANDREW LEE. 77 

long for the salvation of sinners. I want 
the means employed, that are in our power, 
for the accomplishment of such a glorious 
object. I never felt so anxious for perish- 
ing souls in my life, as I do now. I have 
spent the week in groaning and lamenta- 
tion on account of my own sins and those 
of others. The good Lord appear for us in 
mercy, and revive his work in every heart. 

November 17th. My feelings, the week 
past, have been the same as they were the 
previous week. There is nothing doing, 
either to quicken and encourage Christians, 
or to alarm impenitent sinners. We are 
all, in very deed, fast asleep. The Lord 
pour out his Spirit upon us, to convict and 
convert. 

November 24th. Enjoyed the day much. 
Would fain trample the world under my 
feet, and lay hold of eternal realities. The 
things of time and sense rise up naturally 
in the mind and heart; but for spiritual 
things there must be a constant striving. 
My desire is to live near God, and to do 
7* 



78 MEMOIR OF 

every body good. O grant me, heavenly 
Father, the gift of thy Holy Spirit. Make 
me a close follower of Jesus. Help me to 
deny myself, and take up the cross daily. 

December 1st. A neighboring minister 
preached. The words he used were good, 
but there was apparently no life in them. 
The failing, however, was in me, — my 
heart being cold. Had I been prepared, I 
should have been fed ; for the ravens fed 
Elijah. O God, forgive my coldness. Grant 
me thy Holy Spirit to warm my heart. 

December 10th, Tuesday evening. Had 
a meeting of the church, at Mrs. T's., to see 
what could be done for up-building the 
Redeemer's kingdom. All seemed inter- 
ested in the object. I was much encour- 
aged. It was a good meeting. I felt that 
a revival had begun already. 

Note. At the above meeting, there was 
a committee of twelve appointed to go forth, 
two and two, visiting all the members of 
the church that were not present, and con- 



ANDREW LEE. 79 

versing with them, endeavoring to stir up 
one another's minds to the cause of Christ, 
and the welfare of souls. There was also 
contemplated a day of fasting and prayer, 
for the outpouring of the Spirit of God. 
On the 20th instant, another meeting of the 
church was held, at the same place. The 
house was full. All seemed interested, and 
willing to do what they could, to build up 
the cause of the Redeemer. On Christmas 
evening there was another meeting, of all 
classes, at the townhall, which also indi- 
cated great religious interest. Similar meet- 
ings were held, from this time onward, until 
Wednesday, the 12th of February. This 
day was devoted, by the church, to prayer 
and fasting, for the outpouring of the Spirit 
of God. It was also made the beginning 
of a series of meetings to the close of the 
week; during which, the Rev. Mr. P., of 
Gloucester, preached, and the blessing of 
God seemed to descend, — the result of 
which was, that 20 or 30 began to inquire 
what they should do to be saved ; and sev- 
eral were hopefully converted to the Lord. 



80 MEMOIR OF 



SECTION THIRD. 

Farther extracts from his journal, and 
correspo7idence. 

January 5th, 1834. Communion Sab- 
bath. Am wandering in the dark, and 
question, at times, whether I am really a 
child of God, — so much sin and unbelief do 
I discover within me. Nevertheless, I feel 
strong desires after my first love, and de- 
liverance from all that is displeasing to my 
Saviour. 

" Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, 
Prone to leave the God I love ; 
Here's my heart, O take and seal it, 
Seal it from thy courts above." 

February 9th. Through the mercy of 
God, have been blessed with another Sab- 
bath, and good preaching. Hope it will 
not be lost upon me. 

There has been no very essential change 
in my feelings, for months past, except that, 
at times, I have derived comfort from the 



ANDREW LEE. 81 

preaching of the Word, and been permitted, 
here and there, to pluck a few clusters of 
grapes, that I found on the way. Thanks 
to God for this, — especially that he has not 
taken his Holy Spirit from me entirely, 
when I have wandered from him. The 
church has entered upon the work of fast- 
ing, humiliation, and prayer. Love begins 
to glow, and run from heart to heart. Bless- 
ed be God, his Holy Spirit has descended 
upon us. It is he that has kindled up this 
divine fire. Evermore bless the name of 
the Lord. 

February 12th, on Wednesday, we began 
our fast, continuing the meetings in con- 
nection with it, through the week. In the 
beginning of these meetings, my faith was 
small. I had no idea how little there was 
of it, until I had examined myself; and 
then I was greatly alarmed to discover 
where I had got, — so cold, so formal, — nay 
I may say, even dead. Blessed be God, 
however, he has refreshed us with his 
presence. A revival is at hand. Christians 



82 MEMOIR OF 

are comforted. Sinners are going to be 
converted. I hope soon to hear young con- 
verts shouting praises to their great Re- 
deemer. 

Mr. P. preached nine sermons. God I 
believe was with him. They seemed to 
come from the heart. At least, they reached 
the heart. Many have been brought to 
bow, in confession of sin, and to own the 
name of Jesus. The Lord is especially 
among us. The church has received the 
spirit of prayer. I have never felt more of 
it myself than at the present time. I have, 
as it seems to me, received what I called 
for, even while I was speaking. I think I 
have never had more solid enjoyment in 
religion, in my life, than I now have. 
Blessed be God for the refreshing he has 
granted to those who trust in his name. 

February 23d, Sunday. Have never felt 
such nearness to God in prayer as I do at 
the present time. I can go directly to God, 
as it seems to me, and spread out all my 
wants before him, — just as a little child 



ANDREW LEE. 83 

goes to an earthly parent, and asks for 
bread, when it is hungry. I take delight 
in prayer. I feel a flame of love in my 
heart, — love to God. and love to my fellow- 
creatures. I want to hear all the children 
of men giving glory to God. We have had 
two good meetings, the week past, at which 
my heart overflowed. I felt as if I could 
stand all the day long, and plead with sin- 
ners to come to Christ, and taste the joys 
of his salvation. 

March 2d. Have had a week of religious 
enjoyment. The Lord continues to be pres- 
ent with us, by his Holy Spirit. I feel 
great freedom in speaking in the name of 
Jesus. I am amazed at what God has 
done for me. Who could have thought 
that such a worthless worm of the dust as 
I am, should find pardon through redeem- 
ing love, after having neglected it so long ! 
Truly it is by grace we are saved; and 
may I be kept through grace, unto salva- 
tion. 

March 9th. Have had a good share of 



84 MEMOIR OF 

spiritual enjoyment, the day and week 
past. Young converts are praising God. 
This I hope, is but the beginning of a good 
work, in this place. Revivals are also mul- 
tiplying around us. Blessed be God, for 
what he is doing among us, and for what 
we hear of his goings forth, in other places. 

March 16th. Have enjoyed the day and 
week past, and felt very anxious for uncon- 
verted sinners. Have had great delight in 
communing with my heavenly Father. 
There are times in which I love to go to 
him, and spread out all my wants before 
him, — in which I find great nearness to the 
throne of grace in prayer ; and seem to ob- 
tain answers of peace to my requests, even 
while I am speaking. Wonderful, wonder- 
ful condescension in God, thus to bend his 
ear to a sinful worm ! O, let me humble 
my soul before him in the dust. 

March 23d. This has been a precious 
day to my soul. I have felt full of love to 
God and all my fellow creatures. O, that 
sinners would come to Christ. 



ANDREW LEE. 85 

Extracts from a letter to a brother, dated 

Manchester, March 27th, 1834. 
" Dear Brother, 

" Religion begins to revive among us. 
About twenty give evidence of a saving 
change. I hope to see many more turning 
from the error of their ways to the Lord. 
The Holy Spirit is also working wonders, in 
towns around us. Sinners are coming to 
Christ, by hundreds. Dear brother, I pray 
you beware how you neglect this great sal- 
vation. There is nothing to be gained, by 
keeping away from Christ. It brings the 
soul into great danger of being lost. De- 
ceive not yourself with the belief, that all 
will come out well with you, at last. The 
immortal part is of too much value to be 
periled in this way. We often find the 
hopes of Universalists failing them on a 
dying bed. The Scriptures speak of the 
hope of the hypocrite that perishes, when 
God takes away the soul. I entreat you, 
my brother, to search the Bible with all 
diligence, — praying God earnestly, to lead 
8 



86 MEMOIR OF 

you in the way of eternal life. Above all 
things, seek the salvation of your soul. 
u Your affectionate brother, 

A. L. ;? 

His journal continued. 

Fast Day, April 3d. Feel guilty of great 
disobedience and slothfulness in my Mas- 
ter's service. The Lord, however, is mer- 
ciful, so that I am not yet cut down as a 
cumberer of the ground. O, bless him, my 
soul, for his goodness and forbearance, that 
endure forever. 

April 13th. Have enjoyed the day. O, 
that all could see the loveliness there is in 
Christ. It is still encouraging with us. 
Some are inquiring after Jesus, and a num- 
ber of converts are praising God. 

April 27th. Have been detained at home, 
a part of the day. Am troubled with poor 
health ; but enjoy a steady feeling of confi- 
dence in Jesus Christ. He is my hope, my 
righteousness, my firm support. Friends 
and heart may fail me, but Jesus never 
fails. 



ANDREW LEE. 87 

June 1st, Sunday. We had an address, 
in the forenoon, from Dr. S., on Home 
Missions. In the afternoon, Mr. E. preach- 
ed, from Isa. 42 : 20. I have enjoyed the 
day very well. Want, however, to have 
my walk closer with God. Disobedience 
and the world make a thick cloud, that 
hides from me the presence of Him whom I 
adore. Deep indwelling sin bars the Sav- 
iour out of my heart. 

June 22d. The Lord appears to be still 
among us by his Holy Spirit. Our meet- 
ings are well attended. Some, as we hope, 
have been converted. Thanks to God for 
his enduring mercy. 

July 6th, Communion, — a precious day. 
Have had a goodly number added to the 
church. And yet, how many there are 
that know nothing of God, — that yield no 
obedience to the Gospel of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ ! O, God, have mercy 
upon them. 

July 27th. The Holy Spirit seems to 
have left us. There are no more conver- 



88 MEMOIR OF 

sions. I mourn his departure. And yet it 
was I that grieved him away, by departing, 
in the first place, from him. Little by little, 
the world has stolen away my affections 
from divine things, until I find myself cold 
and dead. 

August 3d. Obtain occasionally some 
glimpses of my first love. There are times 
when I want to be in the Spirit, and to 
live by the Spirit, — glorifying God in my 
body, and in my Spirit, which are God's. 

September 6th, Sunday. Do not feel so 
much engaged as I have felt, in times past. 
Things drag heavily with me, in religion. 
I was active in Satan's service ; but in the 
service of Christ, O, how slothful ! 

September 13th. Had the pleasure of 
going to meeting, a part of the day. Felt 
dull, before I went ; but was in hopes to 
meet my Saviour there, — nor was I disap- 
pointed. Agreeably to his promise, u where 
two or three are gathered together in my 
name, there am I in the midst of them," I 
found him present with his consolations. I 



ANDREW LEE. 89 

seemed to breathe the air of heaven, as 
soon as I entered the house. I could not 
but regard it as a blessed place. No won- 
der that David esteemed a day in the divine 
courts, as better than a thousand ; and had 
rather be a door-keeper in the house of his 
God, than dwell in the tents of wicked- 
ness. Blessed be God for the gift of his 
grace, in bestowing upon me such a love for 
his sanctuary. It is indeed a blessed place. 
September 20th. Am sick in body, but 
calm in mind, and, if not deceived, submis- 
sive to the divine will. I have a hope well 
founded, as I trust, which sustains me in 
all my trials, — the robe of Christ's righte- 
ousness thrown around me. He came to 
seek and to save that which was lost. I 
feel that I am a lost sinner, and need re- 
demption by his blood. 

" Salvation, O, the joyful sound. *' 

Seven years have flown since I enlisted 
under the banners of king Jesus; and I 
have found him the very best of masters. 
8* 



90 MEMOIR OF 

Never, never have I regretted that I enter- 
ed his service. My only regret is, that I 
have served him no better, — that I have 
been so unfaithful in his cause. It does not 
weary one to labor for years in his vine- 
yard. I feel that I have just begun his 
work. O, that I may prove more faithful 
to my Lord and Master. 

October 17th. Fain would I bring my- 
self up to a higher standard in the divine 
life, — a more thorough discernment of my 
sinfulness, and unworthiness, in order to 
prostrate myself more deeply in the dust 
before God; and come more perfectly to 
realize the greatness of the salvation brought 
to my soul, through Jesus Christ. My 
strong desire is to be a humble follower of 
the Lamb. O, that I might be clothed 
with humility. 

November 16th, Sunday. I have a strong 
desire to do more than I am doing, at pres- 
ent, for the cause of Christ. I feel anxious 
for my impenitent friends. I am distressed 
on their account. I carry about me a bur- 



ANDREW LEE. 91 

den daily, in their behalf. I long for the 
salvation of their souls. My prayer is, that 
God would appear again in mercy, for this 
place. But why should I, a poor, miserable, 
wretched sinner; myself weighed down 
with the plague of my own heart, feel such 
intense anxiety for others ? It is because I 
have found a remedy in an all-sufficient 
Saviour. His blood cleanses from all sin ; 
and I want them also to come and taste of 
his great salvation. 

November 23d. Have enjoyed another 
Sabbath. Feebleness and pain, however, 
remind me, that a few more Sabbaths will 
close the scene with me, here on earth. I 
hope, however, through the righteousness 
of Jesus, who died for sinners, to be pre- 
pared for the enjoyment of an eternal Sab- 
bath, in his kingdom above. Every day of 
the week is good ; but the Sabbath is the 
best of all. Every house that shelters us 
from the weather, has its excellence; but 
far more excellent is the house of God, — for 
here my soul is fed with spiritual food. 



92 MEMOIR OF 

Dearly do I love his tabernacle. I esteem 
my earthly friends; but the friends of 
Christ are the delight of my heart, and in 
their company I love to abide. O, blessed, 
then, will be the day, when all shall meet 
together in that kingdom above, and every 
tongue join in the song, " worthy is the 
Lamb; glory to God; hallelujah; praise 
his name forever." 

November 30th. There has been an 
eclipse of the natural sun to day. Apt 
emblem this, of my own condition ! I feel 
that the world has got between me and 
Christ, the source of all divine light and 
comfort, and shrouded me in darkness. 
Lord, increase my faith, — dispelling the 
thick clouds which sins of disobedience and 
unbelief have collected around me, — caus- 
ing the Sun of Righteousness to break 
through upon my soul. 

December 7th. Again the Sabbath re- 
turns. I feel that the eclipse is partly off. 
The Sun of Righteousness does begin to 
shine upon me. I am tasting the joys of 
heaven. 



ANDREW LEE. 93 

December 28th. This is the last Sabbath 
of the year. O, my soul, there will be a 
last Sabbath for thee to enjoy on earth. 
Art thou prepared to stand before Christ in 
judgment, and answer for all the deeds 
done in thy body ? A solemn question ! 
Hope thou in God. The blood of Christ 
cleanses from all sin. Trust in him for 
salvation. 

January 4th, Sunday, 1835. A new year 
has begun. I would enter upon it renew- 
ing my vows of consecration to God. May 
my heart be renewed by the Holy Spirit, 
and the year be better spent than the last. 
My resolve is, — the Lord strengthening 
me, — to live more to the divine glory, and 
the benefit of my fellow creatures, than I 
have hitherto done. 

January 25th. The precious Sabbath 
returns. O, that with it, the Holy Spirit 
would descend upon us, in his convincing 
and converting power. I long for a re- 
freshing from thy presence, O, God. 

" Let thy grace, now like a fetter, 
Bind my wandering heart to thee." 



94 MEMOIR OF 

February 1st, Sunday. Have been 
weighed down, the week past, with a burden 
for the salvation of souls. O, the value of 
the immortal part ! It seems to me of ines- 
timable worth. I feel an increasing desire 
for the salvation of sinners. My continual 
prayer is, "O, Lord, revive thy work." I 
struggle with groanings which cannot be 
uttered, entreating God to glorify himself 
in their conversion. 

March 1st, Communion. Have been 
dull all day ; and yet, had greater freedom 
in prayer than for some time past. O, how 
pleasant it is to make one's escape from the 
world, and draw near to God. 

April 5th, Sunday. Felt it my duty to 
turn to God, in repentance, — humbling my- 
self in the very dust before him, on account 
of my departure from his ways; and O, 
how shall I declare the goodness of God to 
me, in favoring me with a single glimpse 
of his glory ! It fills my heart with joy. 

June 21st, Sunday. Have been review- 
ing the dealings of God with me, in days 
and years that are past ; and it is enough 



ANDREW LEE. 95 

to melt down the hardest heart. Alas ! 
mine has become exceedingly hard. The 
reason of it is obvious, — the manner in 
which I have treated his long-suffering, 
goodness, mercy, forbearance, and loving 
kindness, — together with the ten thousand 
blessings which I am daily receiving from 
his hands. Blush, O my soul, and lay 
thyself low in the dust. Let the tender 
mercies of thy God lead thee to repentance. 

" Show pity Lord, O Lord, forgive, 
Let a repenting rebel live." 

July 26th, Sunday. I find the Christian 
life a scene of great internal warfare, and 
struggling. Fain would I live more to the 
glory of God ; but the world breaks in upon 
me, with its bewitching cares : and I find 
my mind wandering with the fool's eyes to 
the ends of the earth. I hate it. I would 
have all my affections fixed on God, and 
things above. I would have my heart and 
conversation in heaven, and glorify God in 
my body and my spirit, which are his. 

December 20th, Sunday. There has 



96 MEMOIR OF 

been a protracted meeting at the Farms. I 
was enabled, in the providence of God, to 
attend for four evenings ; and I feel myself 
under obligations of gratitude for the privi- 
lege. I there saw the divine power exhib- 
ited in the conversion of impenitent sinners. 
There also, my own soul, as I trust, was 
refreshed with the joys of salvation. While 
there, I made vows of greater fidelity to my 
Master, and my impenitent friends. I also 
endeavored to improve my feeble powers in 
the way of exhortation. The Lord seemed 
to help me warn sinners of their danger, 
and invite them to come to Jesus and have 
their sins washed away. My own soul 
found peace and joy in the exercise. O, 
why am I ever deaf to the gentle prompt- 
ings of duty ? What darkness, disobedience 
brings into the soul. 

January 8th, 1836. A new year has 
commenced. I would enter upon it, en- 
deavoring after new obedience, — to live 
more devoted to God, more humble before 
him, — letting my light so shine, as to prove 
a benefit to all my fellow creatures. 



ANDREW LEE. 97 

Note. The above is all the record I find, 



in Mr. Lee's journal, for the year 1836. In 
the autumn of the year 1835, his friend, 
Mr. F. A., found it expedient, all things 
considered, to try a southern climate, for 
the sake of his health. Accordingly, he 
and his wife embarked at Boston, Novem- 
ber 25th, for Manzanilla de Cuba, under 
the charge of Captain R. The following 
correspondence between them, during their 
separation from each other, may be appro- 
priately introduced in this place. 



SECTION FOURTH. 
Correspondence with Mr. Allen, fyc. 

Extracts of a letter from his friend, Mr. F. A., at Man- 
zanilla, dated, in the first instance, Sunday, Dec. 27th, 
1835. 

Dear Bro. L., 

Remembering what frequent and pleas- 
ant intercourse we have had together, in 
9 



98 MEMOIR OF 

times past, I thought it would gratify you 
to receive a visit from me, to-day, such an 
one as I can make you, with paper and ink. 
We arrived here, on Saturday, the 12th in- 
stant, and landed the next day. Of course, 
this is only the third Sabbath we have 
spent in this place. Alas, there is no Sab- 
bath here ! This day is not here devoted 
to sacred rest ; it is not regarded unto the 
Lord. It is entirely given up to cock- 
fighting, gambling, dancing, and other sec- 
ular amusements. I am disgusted with 
things, in this respect. What, however, 
can I do ! Nothing but pity and pray. O 
that they might be led to a discovery of the 
only way, in which man can be saved ! I 
never thought I should ever find myself in 
a land where there is no Sabbath, and none 
to meet together in divine worship. It is a 
pleasing thought, however, that even at 
this distance, I can unite with you in spirit, 
and call on the same Lord, — obtaining from 
him whatever I need. Pray for me, that I 
may be able to put my whole trust in Him. 



ANDREW LEE. 99 

As for the climate here, we find every- 
thing to our minds. The weather is warm 
and pleasant. I have no occasion to put on 
a great coat, nor yet to watch the wind, to 
see from what quarter it blows. I can 
walk out, at any time, either in the morn- 
ing or the evening, — putting on my thin 
clothes, and taking an umbrella to keep off 
the sun. Instead of tying a handkerchief 
round my ears to prevent them from freez- 
ing, I use it to wipe the sweat from my 
face. Every thing looks green and beauti- 
ful. We have vegetables of all sorts in 
abundance. I cannot realize that it is win- 
ter with you, and so cold. Withal, I feel 
improved in body. 

Monday eve. I hope it will please the 
Lord to bless this voyage for the restoration 
of my health. I must leave all with him. 
He knows the end from the beginning, and 
what is for the best. I think that if I live 
to get home again, I shall know how to 
prize the religious privileges of New Eng- 



100 MEMOIR OF 

land. It is melancholy to think, that I and 
my wife are probably the only persons in 
Manzanilla that can unite in praising God 
for renewing grace. This is verily a land 
of spiritual darkness. The Man of Sin 
reigns in these quarters, and here Satan has 
his seat, leading souls captive at his will. 
O may the Lord cut short his reign. 

Tuesday. I would hope, my dear bro- 
ther, that some of you are now assembled 
together, for prayer. I am loth to believe 
you have forgotten this memorable even- 
ing. And may I not indulge the pleasing 
thought, that you also remember me in 
your prayers? I need a double portion of 
grace, in my present condition. You also 
need a great share of the same spirit, to en- 
able you to persevere in the good work 
which you have begun. Let not your 
hands grow weak, nor your confidence fail. 
Be strong in the Lord and the power of his 
might, faithfully warning sinners to flee 
from the wrath to come and lay hold of the 
hope set before them in the gospel. May 



ANDREW LEE. 101 

it be, you have found some one to take hold 
with you, and that God has revived his 
work. If not, persevere. In due time you 
will reap if you faint not. The prize is be- 
fore you. Press on and win it. Prove 
faithful, and you will receive a crown of 
glory at last. 

From your unworthy brother, F. A. 



From Mr. Lee in reply. 

Manchester, Feb. 8th, 1836. 
Dear Brother A., 

You speak in your letter about the pleas- 
antness of the weather where you are, — 
that you need no cloak, etc. Were you 
here, you would need two, and a great coat 
in the bargain. Withal, your handkerchief 
would not come amiss around your ears; 
and then you would want to cover up your 
face with both hands, to prevent that from 
9* 



102 MEMOIR OF 

freezing, — for the snow that fell while you 
were at Boston, still lies on the ground. 
Indeed, I must stop, or it will make you 
shiver ! And then, as to religion,- — I know 
you want to hear how this is among us ; 
but should I tell you the whole truth in 
this respect, it would make you shiver 
worse than to write you about the weather; 
for our religion is colder than our winter. 
Our meetings are few and thinly attended 
by the brethren. Things look dark and 
gloomy among us, in a spiritual point of 
view. 

There are brighter prospects, however, 
at the Farms. They have had a protracted 
meeting, and the Lord seems to be at work 
there, with great power. Forty or fifty, it 
is hoped, have been renewed. I have been 
there myself, a number of times, and enjoy- 
ed the meetings much. I wished that you 
were with me. I felt perfectly at home. 
The word of the Lord had free course and 
was glorified. The old men bowed their 
knees, and children's tongues were loosed 



ANDREW LEE. 103 

to praise the Lord. In the part of the town 
called Montserrat, nearly all the inhabi- 
tants, young children excepted, have been 
brought, as I am informed, under the pow- 
er of religion. One girl, twelve years of 
age, went into her chamber, resolved not to 
leave it, until she had found her Saviour, 
and, in about an hour, she returned rejoic- 
ing in hope and giving praise to God. Soon 
afterwards, she was made the means, in 
the hands of the Lord, of the hopeful con- 
version of her aged grandfather and her un- 
cle. The Lord grant that the work may 
spread to the earth's remotest bounds, en- 
lightening the darkest corners, and bringing 
every soul to bow to the sceptre of king 
Jesus. 

My dear brother, it is impossible for me 
to write to you all that I feel. I long to see 
you to tell you all about it. We think of 
you often; and my wife hovers over the 
fire, and then begins to talk about brother 
and sister A. Sometimes we wish that you 
were with us ; and then, that we were with 



104 MEMOIR OF 

you, where it is so warm and pleasant. 
Always, when I pass by your house, I 
want to go in and see brother A. I enter, 
but every thing looks odd. There is a lit- 
tle one there ; and then your brother is so 
busy about his work ! I miss you, more 
and more, every day. I long for the time 
to come, when you and your wife will re- 
turn home again. Your absence, dear bro- 
ther, only increases my love for you. The 
Lord grant that our affection for each other 
may continue to increase, not only through 
time, but also through eternity, — we being 
so united to Christ, that nothing can sun- 
der us. As you are in a land of darkness, 
I hope you will be enabled to let your 
light shine around you. The Lord be with 
you, and grant you much of His Spirit. If 
Capt. R. and his wife have not an interest 
in Christ, do labor with them, for their 
soul's salvation. I am too cold to write any 
more at present. I hope the time will soon 
roll round and again bring us together. I 
often read the hymn, "when shall we three 
meet again !" 



ANDREW LEE. 105 

" Though in distant lands we sigh, 
Parched beneath the hostile sky, 
Though the deep between us rolls, 
Friendship shall unite our souls, 
And, in fancy's wide domain, 
Oft shall we three meet again." 

If the Lord please, we shall see each oth- 
er's faces again on earth, to speak of His 
goodness and praise His name together. If 
not, may we meet together in His kingdom 
above, where farewells will never be heard. 

Your affectionate brother, A. L. 

P. S. Feb. 10th. This evening, brother 
M.'s house caught fire and was consumed. 
Thus uncertain are riches, — often making 
themselves wings and flying away. Our 
treasure should be laid up in heaven. 
Since writing the above, I have heard that 
the work of the Lord is going on wonder- 
fully, in the centre of the town, Beverly. 
There are also hopeful appearances of the 
commencement of a work of grace, in Sa- 
lem. Yours. Farewell. A. L. 



106 MEMOIR OF 

Note. Mr. F. A. continued at Manzan- 
illa, up to May the 28th, when he re-em- 
barked for Boston. The southern climate 
seemed to favor him. It did not secure 
him, however, from a severe relapse, dur- 
ing the winter; nor did he, in the end, find 
himself greatly improved. In a postcript 
of a letter written by his wife, to his bro- 
ther Lee, under date of April 9th — 12th, he 
says: 

"Dear Brother L., 

"The time is near, I hope, when we shall 
see each other again, face to face. Excuse 
me, therefore, from writing on this occa- 
sion, — not because I am unmindful of you, 
but on account of its wearisomeness to the 
flesh. No, dear brother, our separation has 
had no tendency to alienate our affections 
from each other. Nothing, I trust, will 
have such a tendency. The love that binds 
us together, I feel, is stronger than death. 
I think I rejoice with you in what you tell 



ANDREW LEE. 107 

me about the revival. God bless you and 
your family. For the present, farewell." 

Mr. A. arrived at Manchester, on the 
evening of June the 18th., when the two 
friends, with their families, had the happi- 
ness of meeting again, and uniting together, 
as they had so often done before, in prayer 
and praise to God. 

On the 25th of February, of this year, 
Mr. Lee lost his mother. She died at Cape 
Elizabeth, near Portland, in the 74th year 
of her age. He has made no reference to 
the event, in his journal. That it took a 
strong hold of him, however, there is no 
question. Soon after he heard of it, he 
wrote a long and interesting letter to his 
friends there, expressive of his feelings on 
the subject, which is known to have been 
extensively circulated; but which no efforts 
hitherto made, have succeeded in recover- 
ing. 

The next record that we find in Mr. 
Lee's Journal, is dated Jan. 1837, and is as 
follows: 



108 MEMOIR OF 

"The last year has passed away, about 
as usual. God has been good to us in pre- 
serving the lives and healths of me and my 
family. O the many blessings that have 
been showered down upon us, and the lit- 
tleness of our gratitude in return! As to 
myself, I have a strong desire for the salva- 
tion of souls. I feel, however, that I have 
done very little for this object. I am very 
slothful as to all spiritual things, but quick 
enough to engage in the affairs of the world. 
I look back upon my life, the past year, with 
shame. I hope I shall live nearer to God 
for the year to come." 

We find nothing more from Mr. Lee's 
pen, up to Jan. 1838, when he writes as 
follows : 

" This year began with a church fast, and 
looks promising. A large number of pro- 
fessors, met together on the occasion. I en- 
joyed the day much. My wife was fully 
persuaded that there would be a revival 



ANDREW LEE. 109 

soon. Her anticipations, in this respect, an 
imated her whole frame. Her countenance 
shone with the inward joy she had, of sal- 
vation. Her heart was filled with the love 
of God beyond any thing that I ever knew 
her to experience before. Though confined 
of sickness to her room, she was carried 
from earth to heaven. ' ? 



SECTION FIFTH. 

Death of his wife, Mrs. Allen, and her 
husband, fyc. 

Not long after this, Mr. Lee was called 
to severe trials. Sunday, Jan. the 21st, his 
friend, Mr. F. A., writes thus respecting 
him: 

" To-day, brother Lee followed to the 
grave, the remains of his dear wife. She 
had long been feeble. Her last sickness, 
however, and especially, its fatal termina- 
tion, came very unexpectedly upon us. 
10 



110 MEMOIR OF 

She fell asleep on Friday, at two o'clock in 
the morning. To her husband, asking her 
how she felt, after he had informed her she 
was struck with death, she replied, i" am 
happy. Blessed are the dead which die 
in the Lord. The Lord stand by dear 
brother Lee and support him under this 
heavy affliction, — causing it to work to- 
gether both for his good, and for mine" 

A female friend, who was present, during 
all the trying scene, remarks, that, for a few 
moments after the breath left the body of 
his wife, Mr. Lee, notwithstanding he said 
her words to him, / am happy, were all he 
could ask, was in great distress. He re- 
tired, however, and poured out his prayers 
to God, for relief; when his distress van- 
ished, and redeeming love brake in upon 
him, overpowering his soul. He appeared 
like a little child, bowing beneath his fa- 
ther's rod. He used to say to me, con- 
tinues this friend, that when he followed 
her to the grave, he did not realize she was 
dead. "My spirit was all the time with 



ANDREW LEE. Ill 

hers, over on the other side of Jordan." 
Mr. Lee himself gives the following ac- 
count of the melancholy event : 

" Saturday, Jan. the 13th, my wife had 
a very happy day. Her health was better 
than it had been for more than two months 
previous; and she seemed to enjoy the light 
of God's countenance shining clearly about 
her. At twelve o'clock, that night, she was 
taken ill, and continued to grow worse, un- 
til her death, which occurred on the 19th 
instant, at two o'clock in the morning. 
Her closing hours were the happiest hours 
of her life. Her last words to me were, 
" Rejoice, praise the Lord, for I am happy, 
happy;" and immediately, her happy spirit 
ascended to God, to dwell with holy beings 
there, in his presence, to all eternity. I 
have such overwhelming evidence of her 
piety, as to render it impossible for me to 
doubt, that she is now engaged in singing 
praise in heaven. As for my own feelings, 
they cannot be described. In the beginning 
of the affliction, I found myself at a great 



112 MEMOIR OF 

distance from God. The devil had got be- 
tween me and my Saviour. Doubts and 
fears overwhelmed me. All the powers of 
darkness laid siege to my soul. My sins 
arose before me, in the blackest colors. 
Mountains of guilt pressed upon me. I felt 
myself chained down to despair. The 
meeting and the Sabbath school, that once 
brought me such delight, had lost all their 
desirableness. I thought I should never 
visit them again. I seemed to have been a 
hypocrite all my days. The reality of re- 
ligion, I did not question; but the adversary 
told me I had never had any. I confessed 
at once, that I had been a great sinner. 
I admitted all his whisperings respecting 
my vileness, to be true; and informed him, 
that I knew much more of myself, in this 
respect, than he had suggested. It was the 
greatest storm of temptation and trial I ev- 
er experienced. And then, to have it come 
at such a time ! About thirty minutes be- 
fore my wife died, it had reached such a 
pitch of fury, that I thought soul and body 



ANDREW LEE. 113 

must separate; and I should have sunk 
down in despair, had not God appeared for 
me. In my great distress I called upon 
him, and He came to my deliverance, set- 
ting my soul at liberty, and binding up my 
broken heart. He rescued me from the 
tempter, and brought me out into a large 
place, filling me with the joys of his salva- 
tion, and causing my heart to overflow with 
his love. Oh the wonderful things that I 
saw ! I have reason to bless God, all the 
days of my life, for what he has done for 
my soul! I have had experience of his 
goodness to his children in times past. 
They find themselves comforted in a dying 
hour. Widely different has it fared with 
others. They have always shown them- 
selves anxious to obtain the Christian's 
hope. I have never seen an infidel or a 
Universalist die, whose hopes held out 
to the end. Their refuges of lies fail them. 
And why, O my soul, wast thou made to 
hear the Saviour's voice, and admit him to 
thy bosom ! Sovereign grace has done it. 
10* 



114 MEMOIR OF 

The free gift of God alone has accom- 
plished the work! Forever bless and 
praise the name of the Lord. 

"It would be wrong for me not to revert 
to brother Allen and his wife, on this occa- 
sion. Great has been the support which I 
have derived from my daily visits to them. 
Our hearts are one. Love has knit us to- 
gether, — a love, we fondly believe, stronger 
than death. Much of our time, for months 
past, has been spent in each other's com- 
pany. They have been blessed friends to 
my soul. She, poor woman, has been sick, 
for some time ; but our meetings have been 
heaven on earth. We hope to spend an 
eternity together, in the kingdom of glory." 

Not many weeks after the above event, 
Mr. Lee was called to part with one of his 
dear friends, so often alluded to. Under date 
of May 26th, his brother F. A. writes: 

" To-day I have followed to the grave, 
my dear wife, — the companion of my 
youth, the joy of my heart, and the great 
source of my earthly bliss. She was ever 



ANDREW LEE. 115 

kind, loving, and affectionate, — nay more, 
most truly devoted to my highest happi- 
ness. Yes, the joy of my heart, and the 
delight of my eyes, the dearest idol I have 
knoivn, has been removed. The Lord, 
however, has done it. He gave her to me; 
and he has taken her away from me, — and, 
notwithstanding the severity of the stroke, 
I feel I can say, ' Blessed be the name of 
the Lord;' for I doubt not he has taken her 
to himself in glory. She died on the 24th 
instant, at a quarter past eight o'clock, in 
the morning." 

Mrs. A. had been in very poor health, for 
some months, and confined, much of the 
time, to her house. During the whole of 
her illness, however, she appeared to be en- 
tirely resigned to the will of God, either to 
live or die. "Upon the whole," said she, 
"as I have got so far through, I had rather 
go ; but if it be the will of God to restore 
me, and I can be the means of any good to 
souls, I am willing to come back again. 



116 MEMOIR OF 

Let it be just as the Lord pleases. It is 

" Sweet to lie passive in His hands, 
And know no will, but His." 

She would frequently ask her husband 
to pray for her, that she might have an 
easy passage, — a prayer which seemed, in a 
good measure, to be answered. On the nigth 
before she died, she repeated the words, 

" Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone, 
He whom I fix my hopes upon ; 
His track I see, and I'll pursue 
The narrow way, 'till him I view !" 

looking upward and pointing with a pecu- 
liar expression, when she began the third 
line. "Her trust," says her husband, 
"was in Christ alone. On Him she rested 
unshaken, as her foundation. When I ask- 
ed her, in respect to the prospect of death, 
she would reply, 'My trust is in the Lord. 
I don't know how I shall feel, when the 
time comes, but I leave that with the Lord. 
They that trust in him shall be as 
mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but 



ANDREW LEE. 117 

abideth forever.' I went to her, at one 
o'clock, on the morning of her departure, 
when she said to me, 'I am dying.' I re- 
plied, 'I hope not;' but she added, 'I 
am.' I then said to her, 'you are going 
home.' 'I know it,' she said; and look- 
ing up to me, she added, 'But I am not 
afraid to die.' 'Do you feel,' I said, 
'that you can say, O death, where is thy 
sting; O grave, where is thy victory? Is 
the sting of death taken away?' To which 
she replied, 'yes, for 

Jesus can make a dying bed 

Feel soft as downy pillows are ; 
While on his breast I lean my head, 

And breathe my life out sweetly there. 

'And can you then,' I asked, 'enter into 
the meaning of these words?' 'Yes,' she 
replied; when she sung with an audible 
voice, the following, — the last two lines 
with great clearness : 

' Filled with delight, my raptured soul, 
Can here no longer stay ; 
Though Jordan's waves around me roll, 
Fearless I'll launch away.' " 



118 MEMOIR OF 

Soon after this, Mr. Lee coming in, she 
said, u O brother Lee, I have got most over 
Jordan," looking up into his face, at the 
same time, and smiling. He talked with 
her as he had often done before, — com- 
mending her to God; soon after which, she 
fell asleep. On the following day, May 
27th, Sunday, her husband writes as fol- 
lows : 

"This evening brother Lee came in; 
and we could sympathize with each other; 
and mingle our sorrows; and, what is still 
better, also mutually rejoice; not that the 
Lord had taken our dear wives from us, but 
that he had taken them to himself. We 
found it was good for us to unite our 
prayers together, while we did not doubt 
they were uniting their praises around 
the throne of God and the Lamb. I felt a 
greater, a stronger love for brother Lee, on 
this occasion, than ever before. The Lord 
bless our intercourse with each other, hear- 
ing our prayers, and preparing us for all 
His pleasure here below, and finally for a 



ANDREW LEE. 119 

happy union together in the world of glory, 
there to raise our voices with those of our 
wives, in singing, 'Worthy is the Lamb 
that was slain to redeem us by his blood.' w 

Mr. Lee himself speaks of the death of 
this friend in the following terms : 

May, 1838. — " Sister Allen has just been 
called to pass over Jordan, and the Lord 
was with her. It is a mournful event; for 
I am loth to part with such a friend. She 
sung, when she was dying, in the triumphs 
of faith; and her willing spirit, leaving the 
clayey tenement, ascended with joy to the 
bright regions above, to be with her God 
and Saviour forever. O bless the Lord, — in 
my interviews with her, I have had a 
glimpse of Canaan. Br. Allen finds him- 
self comforted respecting her, in a well- 
grounded hope that she is in the glorious 
world of the redeemed. As we are now 
situated alike, in respect to our wives, 
much of our time, to my great support and 
consolation, is spent together. He is a bro- 
ther whom I greatly love. We often meet 



120 MEMOIR OF 

together and converse on the things of the 
kingdom; and I hope we enjoy the pres- 
ence of God." 

Of Mr. Lee's condition and progress, 
either in a worldly respect, or a religious, 
during the remainder of this year, he has 
left us but a single record, and that is withr 
out date. It probably belongs, however, 
towards its close. From this, it would 
seem, that the afflictions through which he 
had passed, had somewhat undermined his 
health; at the same time, it is also appa- 
rent that he was growing in religion. 

"For eight months past," says he, in this 
record, "my body has been greatly pros- 
trated with disease. During the whole pe- 
riod of my sickness, however, I have de- 
rived great support from trusting in the 
Lord. It has been with me, in spiritual 
things, like a sea of glass, — all smooth, and 
shining with the glory of God. O my soul, 
bless the Lord for his goodness to me, in this 
respect." 



ANDREW LEE. 121 

On the 30th of January, 1839, he wrote 
a letter to his brother's wife, in Portland, Me., 
from which the following extracts are taken. 

u Dear Sister, 

" The past year has been a mournful, dull 
year to me. I miss my wife very much, in 
my sickness; though my children give me 
every attention that I wish. Elizabeth has 
all the care of the family. She is a good 
child. My children are a great blessing 
and comfort to me. Especially, however, 
do I find peace and support, in Him whom 
I trust I believe on. God has been my 
helper in all my distress. The religion of 
Jesus grows sweeter every day. I hope I 
can praise His holy name. Certainly I 
can bear testimony that the Lord is good. 
His tender mercies are great. It is over 
eleven years since I trust I gave my heart to 
Christ, and he has never left me, but has 
upheld me by his free spirit, and has given 
me the joys of his salvation. The Lord has 
done great things for me. 
11 



122 MEMOIR OF 

"I hope, dear sister, that your course is 
onward, to heaven, that blessed abode, that 
you have the presence of God, and experi- 
ence the joys of that salvation which will 
raise you above this world, and sustain you 
through all the trying scenes of your pil- 
grimage here below. My mind is frequent- 
ly with you and your family. I hope we 
shall be spared to see each other oftener 
than we have done, — your husband and 
sons being much at sea. Write to me as 
soon as they come home. I shall wish to 
hear from them. Our love to you all. 

" Yours, A. L." 

To his niece, he writes, at the close of 
the letter, as follows : 

"Dear Elizabeth, 

" My strong desire is to have every one be- 
come a partaker of the religion of Christ; 
you must not think it strange, therefore, 
that I address you on the subject. I want 
to know your feelings. Have you given 



ANDREW LEE. 123 

your heart away to Christ? To be assured 
of this, would occasion me great joy, for 
then I should say, c another blessed soul is 
to stand before the throne of God and the 
Lamb, singing the songs of redeeming love 
forever.' If you have not, then do it. 
Think, Elizabeth, O think on eternity, eter- 
nity! I cannot bear to conceive of you 
otherwise than as having given yourself to 
Him, who bled and died, that you might 
live. O Elizabeth, what is God? God is love. 
Could you endure banishment from his 
presence? Tremendous thought! What is 
Heaven? Heaven is the abode of love and 
blessedness! Can I never enter there? 
The very thought would rend me to pieces. 
Blessed be God, the gate of heaven stands 
open, and all are invited to come. Pray, 
then, do not you refuse. Love and peace 
and joy in the Holy Spirit be with you, and 
lead you through the snares and tempta- 
tions of this world. All your cousins here 
send kind regards. 

" Yours, in affection and love, 

A. L." 



124 MEMOIR OF 

Not many weeks after this, still another 
event occurred, in the life of Mr. Lee, which 
served to detach him more from the world, 
and draw him nearer heaven. He was 
called to part with his remaining friend, 
Mr. F. A. On the 27th of October, the dis- 
order with which this dear brother in Christ 
had long been afflicted, assumed a danger- 
ous aspect; he was seized with an unusu- 
ally copious hemorrhage of the lungs. 
From this time onward to his death, — a pe- 
riod of nearly five months, he was generally 
in great bodily distress. He continued, 
however, with the exception of the last 
three days of his life, to enjoy the use of his 
reason, and all the consolations and sup- 
ports of a well grounded hope in Christ; 
and even after this, he retained, for the most 
part, his wonted clearness on the subject of 
religion,— calling to mind the death of 
his wife; conversing, at times, with one 
and another, about an interest in Christ; 
and showing himself wholly wrapped up 
in love for souls, and the things of the king- 



ANDREW LEE. 125 

dom of heaven. He fell asleep, March the 
21st, 1839, — leaving the greater part of his 
property to the benevolent societies of the 
day. The last record he has left us of him- 
self, is dated July the 4th, 1838, and evi- 
dently shows us whither his thoughts and 
feelings were tending : 

"Many have gone to Salem to-day, to 
see a balloon rise. O that we could see 
people as anxious to have the Redeemer's 
kingdom rise in the world around them, and 
in their own hearts. As for myself, I staid 
about home, taking my meals with my 
mother-in-law. After supper, I walked up 
to the grave of my dear wife. O sweet and 
lovely spot, keep what is committed to thy 
trust, until the great rising day; and O, 
far sweeter and more lovely Jesus, thou 
wilt keep that immortal spirit, for which 
thou didst bleed and die, and which was 
redeemed and saved by thy blood. Yes, — 
thou hast said it, — 'there the wicked cease 
from troubling, and there the weary are at 
rest.' O prepare me for my change, when- 
11* 



126 MEMOIR OF 

ever it shall come. Help me to live, feel- 
ing my dependence on thee, and then I 
shall find myself independent of every 
thing else." 

Mr. Lee has, himself, made the following 
record : 

" March 21st. This day, my beloved 
brother, F. Allen, has exchanged earth for 
heaven. 

glorious change, bless'd abode ! 
Now he is near and like his God ; 
Where Jesus is, where angels sing, 
Where saints rejoice and praise their King.* 

"Yes, — I cannot doubt it, — the three 
friends have now met together again, — 
he, my wife, and his own! O Lord, help 
me so to live, that I may meet them in thy 
kingdom at last, and there join with them 
in praises to Him that sits upon the throne, 



* Whether these last two lines are his own, or a quotation, 
I am unable to say. The first two are from Watts, 17th 
Psalm. 



ANDREW LEE. 127 

and to the Lamb who shed his blood to 
bring us home to God, and to the adorable 
Spirit, forever. O my soul, evermore bless 
the Lord! Three have already gone. I 
am left behind, indeed, to mourn the loss 
of their company; but, thanks to God, I 
can rejoice that my loss is their gain. 
Yes, bless the Lord, I cannot wish them 
back again on earth; but I have strong de- 
sires to go where they are, that I may be 
with them, and see Jesus, and praise him 
as I ought/ 7 



SECTION SIXTH. 

Revival and Sabbath school Celebration. 

The above is, in the original, followed by 
some records respecting a revival in the 
place, his own spiritual exercises, during 
the work, etc. They are without date. 
To understand them, in all their bearings, it 
should be remembered, that Mr. E., the 
minister, had at this time, been sick, and 



128 MEMOIR OF 

generally unable to preach, for about a 
year. The church, especially the brethren, 
had also long been in a state of great cold- 
ness, — scarcely enough of them, for con- 
ducting the services, making their appear- 
ance at the meetings in the evening. 
These facts had filled the breasts of faith- 
ful and observant individuals with deep 
concern for the welfare of Zion, in their 
midst. Several of the females, in particu- 
lar, had been very much engaged in secret 
wrestlings at the throne of grace, in her be- 
half. It is also well known to some, that 
Mr. Lee had been greatly wrought upon 
with anxiety for souls, and drawn forth in 
the most fervent exercises of private inter- 
cession for the outpouring of the Holy 
Spirit. The subject had pressed with such 
weight upon his mind, as to impede his 
slumbers. He had lain awake in the 
night, wishing for day, in order that he 
might go out into the highways and hedges 
warning impenitent sinners. What it was, 
whether of mercy or judgment, he had 



ANDREW LEE. 129 

been unable to divine, — but he had long 
been feeling that some important event was 
at hand, and earnestly struggling in secret 
prayer to God, that it might prove an event 
of mercy, — a revival of religion in the 
place. Sometimes, as his health was fee- 
ble, he had thought, that perhaps his own 
end was approaching, and that he was call- 
ed on, by this presentiment, to do what he 
had to be done, before it came. Under 
these varied impressions, he had gone 
round, from house to house, throughout all 
his part of the town, and probably most of 
the other portions, conversing with every 
individual, respecting the salvation of his 
soul. 

With these facts before them, none who 
have been accustomed to watch the deal- 
ings of God with his people, will be sur- 
prised to learn, that, at a meeting, held on 
Wednesday evening, February the 13th, — 
at which a neighboring clergyman presided, 
five or six persons were found anxiously 
inquiring what they should do to be saved ; 



130 MEMOIR OF 

and that this proved but the commence- 
ment of a work of grace which lasted for 
several weeks, and was the means of bring- 
ing some scores into the church. Mr. Lee 
was much confined, during this season. As 
may be supposed, however, the event filled 
his soul with joy. "I had no sooner heard 
of it," he afterwards remarked, "than a 
whole mountain seemed to be taken off my 
shoulders, and my mind was at once re- 
lieved of an oppressive burden." With these 
explanations, I introduce the first of the 
above records. It was, perhaps, made on 
the same day with the last quotations from 
his journal, — being separated from it only 
by a dash, and intimately connected with 
it in general appearance. It is as follows : 

"Thanks to God, the signs of the times 
appear good for Zion ! She is in travail for 
souls; and shall she not bring forth? The 
Lord is drawing near to us, full of mercy 
and grace. The blessings of heaven are 
descending upon all around us, in this 



ANDREW LEE. 131 

place. Saints are rejoicing. The impeni- 
tent are beginning to mourn and weep, on ac- 
count of their sins, and to seek after salva- 
tion. As for myself, I am confined by sick- 
ness, so as to be prevented from meeting 
with the people of God. My heart, how- 
ever, I trust, is with them. I long for the 
prosperity of Zion. O that all men could 
be brought to see and feel the goodness of 
God, and give their hearts away to the 
Lord Jesus Christ. I enjoy religion, feeling 
very happy in my mind. May this sick- 
ness be sanctified to me for the salvation of 
my soul. The Lord is good; forever praise 
and bless His holy name." 

The following, I suppose to have been 
written in the course of the summer, as a 
kind of historical record of a certain period 
in the revival, which, on account of his 
own experience, he felt himself, on a re- 
view, especially bound to remember. The 
evening to which he refers, was probably 
that of the second of March. 



132 MEMOIR OF 

u On a Saturday evening, while I was 
alone, meditating on the goodness of God, 
and what he had done for me, — all my fam- 
ily having gone to meeting, — the Holy Spir- 
it seemed to descend upon me, almost as he 
did upon the apostles, on the day of Pente- 
cost. My whole soul became electrified 
with his presence. I was filled to the very 
brim. I could say, 'my cup runneth 
over.' It altogether passed my compre- 
hension. I knew not what to make of it. 
In silent admiration I could only exclaim, 
•'Bless the Lord, bless God, bless Him for- 
ever. O Christ is precious, — the chief 
among ten thousands. 7 I felt that I want- 
ed to depart that minute and be with Him 
and the glorified spirits around Him in 
heaven, where I could praise Him as I 
ought. O rapturous height of divine love! 
O glorious and exalted scene that burst 
upon my view! How could I otherwise 
than long to take my leave of earth and 
soar away to heaven ! 

u In the midst of my ecstacy, there was a 



ANDREW LEE. 133 

noise at the door! About fifteen of the 
Sabbath school children had come to make 
me a visit. I was overjoyed to see them; 
and conversed with them on religion. I 
found their minds under serious impres- 
sions. They all wanted an interest in 
Christ. I spent the evening in great happi- 
ness. I had a glimpse of the land of Ca- 
naan, from the top of Pisgah ! 

"The week which followed was one of 
the most precious seasons I ever knew, — 
saints rejoicing, sinners trembling, con- 
verts multiplying ! Salvation came to ev- 
ery house; the spirit of God operated upon 
every heart. One hundred and ten, at 
least, were hopefully converted to the Lord ? 
that week. The revival, however, did not 
last long. A short, but indeed a glorious 
work, did the Lord make with us. More 
than one hundred and seventy, in all, were 
thought to have been savingly wrought 
upon by divine grace. 5 * Bless God forever! 



Mr. Lee has two hundred and fifty, but this is too high. 

12 



134 MEMOIR OF 

All the glory is due to His name. I feel it 
to be impossible for me to praise Him 
enough." 

The last record that Mr. Lee ever made 
in his Journal, and with which I shall close 
Avhat I have to say of him, in this chapter, 
was on the fourth of July, of this year. A 
Sabbath school celebration had been ar- 
ranged, chiefly on his account. He was 
feeble and therefore unable to share largely 
in the fatigues of the day. His whole soul, 
however, was interested in the exercises. 
He has noticed it as follows: 

" July 4th. Have witnessed a very pleas- 
ant scene to-day, — a Sabbath school cel- 
ebration! About eight hundred persons 
assembled together in the meeting-house, 
where they heard an address from the Rev. 
Mr. W., of Salem, and went through other 
exercises; when they marched out into the 
fields, and partook of refreshments that had 
been prepared for them on the occasion. It 
was a solemn and interesting day, both to 



ANDREW LEE. 135 

parents and children. Every thing was 
appropriate and pleasant. My own feel- 
ings partook largely in the joy. The fourth 
of July was never spent so well among us, 
before. We bless God for it. For all the 
favors we receive, glory be given to His 
name." 



136 MEMOIR OF 



CHAPTER III. 

FROM MY ACQUAINTANCE WITH MR. LEE UNTIL 
HIS DEATH. 

My installation in Manchester took place 
the 18th of September, 1839. Of course, it 
was not long before I became acquainted 
with Mr. Lee. 

My attention was first attracted to him, 
as one of those hearers, who seem to de- 
vour every word the preacher utters. Soon 
afterwards, it was my privilege to hear his 
voice of exhortation and prayer, in the con- 
ference-meeting, and feel myself wrought 
upon by the fervency and deep sincerity 
with which he spake. In the next place, 
I discovered him, as Superintendent of the 
Sabbath school, going round, from pew to 
pew, conversing with individuals about the 
salvation of their souls. No sooner had I 
begun to visit the people of my charge, than 
I found the perfume of his name abroad 
among them, as one, who like Demetrius, 



ANDREW LEE. 137 

had " a good report of all men, and of 
the truth itself." In the course of a few 
months, I was gradually drawn into cir- 
cumstances of greater intimacy with him 
as a Christian friend and brother. 

There was no such thing as mistaking 
the man. His education had, indeed, been 
defective. He was not extensively ac- 
quainted with those works which Dr. Por- 
ter and others recommend as religious 
classics for the promotion of piety. He had 
never interested himself, very much, in the 
abstruser doctrines of our religion. He had, 
however, thoroughly read the Bible, as 
well as some of Bunyan's works, and sev- 
eral of the American Tract Society's publi- 
cations. He was evidently a man of 
prayer. He had drunk deeply at the foun- 
tain of Christian love, — from it, drawing 
all the rules of his own conduct, and his 
measures of right and wrong, in respect to 
the conduct of others. He was exceeding- 
ly fond of holding intercourse with warm- 
hearted Christians ; and soon began to tell 
12* 



138 MEMOIR OF 

me of the great loss he had recently ex- 
perienced in the death of his friend, Mr. 
Forster Allen. He was thoroughly devoted 
to the welfare of the Redeemer's kingdom 
around him. He had made himself famil- 
iar with the spiritual condition of every 
family and permanent inhabitant of the 
place, and could tell how each one stood, in 
this respect, and to what particular dan- 
gers he was exposed ; and if, in cases of 
apparent sincerity, he was apt to form too 
favorable a judgment of a person's relig- 
ious standing, and embrace too many in 
the arms of his charity, he was, at the 
same time, quick-sighted in the detection 
of pride, luke-warmness, worldly-minded- 
ness, and the want of a humble and con- 
trite spirit. 

" What think you 3 " I would say to him, 
"of Mr. A.?" 

u Oh," he would reply, " he is not what 
he ought to be ; but then he has a tender 
mind on the subject of religion, and seems 
to be an inquirer. I have great hopes of 
his becoming a Christian. " 



ANDREW LEE. 139 

"Have you ever had any conversation 
with Mr. B.?" 

"Yes, poor man; he does not bear it, 
however, very well. He is wrapt up in 
his own self-righteousness, and does not 
like to have his heart probed very deep. 
He expects to reach heaven by his good 
works.' 7 

" Have you called on Mr. C. lately, or 
do you know how he feels on the subject of 
religion V 

" Yes ; but I am sorry to say that I have 
great fears of him. He wants the sim- 
plicity of a child. His heart has not been 
sufficiently broken to pieces. He seems 
not to have been brought down to the foot 
of the cross." 

" There is brother D. : you told me that 
you called on him the other day. How did 
you find him?" 

" Not where I could wish. He is alto- 
gether too worldly-minded. Religion seems 
to be out of his way. It is very hard work 
to bring him to talk freely on the subject. 



140 MEMOIR OF 

Indeed, it is necessary to deal very cau- 
tiously with him, in order to talk with him 
at all." 

" How long is it since you had an inter- 
view with brother E. f] 

" Only about a week. We had a precious 
season together. His heart was full of the 
love of God. He is an excellent brother. 
He was thoroughly subdued, at the time of 
his conversion. He has seemed to live up 
to the profession of a Christian, ever since." 

Such is a specimen of the manner in 
which he could pass from heart to heart, 
throughout the church and parish. Nor is 
it any wonder, considering how much he 
loved religious intercourse with his fellow 
creatures. Every opportunity of this kind 
he regarded as a privilege, and embraced 
as such, when his health would permit. 

"Did you visit from house to house, last 
week, as you intended?" I would say to 
him. To which he would reply, " O yes ; 
and a rich time I had of it. I found hearts 
warm with the love of Jesus. All they 



ANDREW LEE. 141 

want, is a little quickening conversation. 
I came back loaded with the clusters of 
Canaan; my own soul is always refreshed 
by such visits.'' 

u How did you succeed in collecting 
money yesterday, for the Missionary cause?'' 

" Why, as to money, very well. That, 
however, was not the best of it. I got 
richly paid for going round, in other re- 
spects. I should love to go if I did not ob- 
tain a cent, it affords me such a precious 
opportunity to converse with one and anoth- 
er, about the things of the kingdom." 

Indeed, he was admirably qualified by 
nature, for such religious conversation. 
He had a great flow of words ; was of a 
playful and witty turn ; and had his temper, 
at all times, under the most perfect control. 
How much soever the impenitent might dis- 
like the matter of his discourse, it was impos- 
sible for them to take offence at his method 
of address. It was his spirit, however, as a 
Christian, and especially the ardent love 
with which he was imbued, which, more 



142 MEMOIR OF 

than any thing else, qualified him for this 
office. 

Not many months had elapsed, after my 
settlement, before I had occasion to observe 
with what tenderness of feeling he con- 
ducted towards his pastor. He came to 
me with much solicitude in his counte- 
nance, in order to ascertain my views on a 
point in regard to which, he suspected he 
differed from me, " Determined," as he 
said, "to be united with you, if possible, 
heart and hand, in your labors, and to do 
nothing that shall hinder you, in the great 
work of the Lord." 

Similar tenderness of feeling he exhibited 
towards all who gave evidence of being 
the children of God. If he could find love 
to the Saviour, in their hearts, he asked 
for nothing more. The name of the sect 
by which they might be called, was a 
thing of utter indifference. As soon, how- 
ever, as he discovered signs of party feel- 
ing among Christians, he took the alarm; 
and then there was something almost an- 



ANDREW LEE. 143 

gelic in the manner in which he would 
seize an erring brother by the arm, saying 
to him, "Be careful what you da, lest 
you rend the garment of Christ. You 
know not what manner of spirit you are 
of." His words would seem like oil, 
thrown upon troubled waters; or that sweet 
voice which rises superior to discord, and 
soon melts down every jarring note, in the 
tones of its own rich melody. 

Of course, such a person proved valua- 
ble to the district in which he resided. 
His neighbors used to speak of him, as 
their shepherd, and looked up to him, for 
guidance and counsel, very much as a 
spiritual father. I early began to discov- 
er his worth, in this respect ; and frequent- 
ly said to him, "I shall always come to 
you, when I wish to find out the state of 
religion, in this part of the town: and I 
shall regard you as responsible for all the 
meetings that are held in your neighbor-, 
hood." Indeed, my confidence in him was 
gradually drawn out to much greater 



144 MEMOIR OF 

lengths. I often requested him to visit par- 
ticular persons in my behalf: and sent 
others to him, for comfort and instruction; 
while the serious-minded often voluntarily- 
resorted to him for the same purposes. All 
classes of persons loved Mr. Lee. Christ- 
ians, however, regarded him with peculiar 
interest; and frequently sought his compa- 
ny, in hopes to catch something of his spir- 
it; and seldom did their interviews with 
him, fail of exciting new religious thoughts 
and emotions, and leading to higher en- 
deavors, after a closer walk with God. 
Especially happy were we, to find him in 
the conference meeting. That, we felt, was 
enough to ensure us, a profitable season. 

The Sabbath school, however, was the 
object that lay nearest his heart, and to 
which all his best powers and faculties 
were devoted. Always, when health 
would permit, he was present, and might 
be seen passing around, from pew to pew, 
conversing in strains of great animation, 
with the teachers and their pupils, respect- 



ANDREW LEE. 145 

ing their salvation. Indeed, the Sabbath 
school was probably the object which, of 
all others on earth, he loved the best. 
Speaking to an aged member of the church, 
on the subject, he said, " Sister L., there is 
one spot where Satan is unable to reach 
me. It is in the Sabbath school. He can- 
not follow me there. The moment I enter 
that, he is obliged to leave me. He can- 
not send one fiery dart after me there. 55 
Often to those teachers who seemed to 
grow discouraged in their work, he would 
say, " when I entered the Sabbath school, 
I enlisted for life; and I wish to step right 
out of it, into heaven. 55 

In the latter part of the winter of 1839 — 
40, the Lord was pleased to pour out his 
Spirit upon us. The first signs of the 
work were discovered in the early part of 
February. During the week ending Sat- 
urday the 15 th, there were three hopeful 
conversions in as many different parts of 
the town. On the Monday following, deep 
seriousness seemed to have taken possession 
13 



146 MEMOIR OF 

of every individual, in the neighborhood 
where Mr. Lee resided. It was as if a 
divine electricity had surcharged every 
thing, and was constantly sparkling forth, 
to those who came near it. On the Friday 
evening following, it made its appearance 
with great power, in another part of the 
town. Many began to ask, what they 
should do to be saved. The next day, in a 
meeting held at nine o'clock in the morn- 
ing, some were found inquiring for the way 
of salvation ; while others were weeping and 
praying for their impenitent friends; and 
others were rejoicing in hope, and singing 
praise to the Lord. In the course of a few 
weeks, quite an encouraging number were 
brought to enlist, so far as man could 
judge, under the banners of Immanuel. 

How much Mr. Lee had prayed for this 
work, I have no means of ascertain- 
ing. Well, however, do I remember the 
peculiar animation of his countenance, 
and the sweetness of his voice, when 
I met him, one day, I think on the 



ANDREW LEE. 147 

Monday above referred to, and began to 
talk with him, on the subject. At one of 
the first inquiry meetings, held in my study, 
during this revival, who should make his 
appearance, but this same good brother, 
with six or eight young men, (some of 
them with their wives,) from his neighbor- 
hood, following after him. He had been 
out and persuaded them to come to the 
meeting, — leading the way before them. 

The next day, a prayer meeting was 
held at the house of an aged sister of the 
church, of which, as I myself was other- 
wise engaged, he for the most part took the 
lead. It was a very solemn meeting. 
About the time for it to commence, he was 
again discovered drawing near to the 
house, with those same persons, whom he 
had led to the inquiry meeting before, and 
more than as many others, the most of 
whom became hopeful converts, and have 
since been received into the church. 

These cases are only specimens of the 
activity he evinced, during this work, so 



148 MEMOIR OF 

far as his strength would permit. He had 
long been an invalid; and before the revival 
closed, his health failed to such a degree 
as to confine him, for the most part, to his 
house. He continued, however, to remem- 
ber the Sabbath school, and to bear the 
cause of Christ, in other relations, on his 
heart. 

In particular, it was one of his great- 
est comforts, to collect the brethren around 
him, in the conference meeting, when- 
ever his health would permit, and to 
converse with those who visited him, on 
religious subjects. In good weather, he 
could also get out, in short excursions, 
among his neighbors; when he made it a 
point, to call on the sick, and, if he could, 
to visit the Sabbath school, and give it a 
word of exhortation. There was one scene, 
in particular, about this time, which brought 
out strikingly to view, some of the promi- 
nent traits of his Christian character. 

On the evening of May the 16th, we 
were called to part with a sister in Christ, 



ANDREW LEE. 149 

Mrs. Charlotte Holland, in the nineteenth 
year of her age ; leaving a husband at sea, 
and one child, behind her. She had been 
hopefully converted in the revival of 1839 ; 
and though she had never gained confi- 
dence enough, in her own piety, to make a 
profession of religion, she had given very 
pleasing evidence that her heart had been 
changed, and had been a faithful member 
of the Sabbath school. She had long been 
feeble. On the 2d of May, however, it was 
apparent that she was declining very fast. 
Several of us had some delightful inter- 
views with her, during her illness. It was 
my privilege to see her twice on the after- 
noon before she died. She longed to be 
gone. "I am not impatient," said she, 
"I am willing to wait God's time; but I 
want to see Jesus.' 7 When I took my leave 
of her, I asked her if she could say 
with Dr. Watts, "I bless God I can lie 
down with comfort at night, not being 
solicitous whether I wake in this world or 
another?" To which she replied, "Oyes, 
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150 MEMOIR OF 

I want to go," — qualifying the expression, 
however, immediately after, at my sugges- 
tion of a fear that she might be impatient, 
by adding, " but I am willing to wait God's 
time." 

During the illness of this child of God, 
Mr. Lee often crept his way, on a warm 
forenoon, to her house, and conversed and 
prayed with her. He appeared, at all times, 
to delight in comforting the sick and dying, 
by leading them to a crucified Saviour ; or 
confirming their hopes in his great atone- 
ment. Between him, however, and such a 
scene as the above, there was something 
peculiarly congenial. It seemed to draw 
him away from the earth, and all its 
charms, — opening heavenly visions before 
him. It was ascending the mount of trans- 
figuration, and getting close to the gates of 
the New Jerusalem. Often would he speak 
to me of these interviews. " O how sweet 
they are," he would say; "I love them 
most dearly. They are little foretastes of 
glory. I wish I could take her place, or 



ANDREW LEE. 151 

/ 

fly away with her to the kingdom of my 
Redeemer." 

He would also dwell on the subject, when 
the brethren and sisters of the church were 
with him, pointing them to what they had 
in prospect, if they would only prove faith- 
ful. Soon after her death, he made his 
way to the Sabbath school, and addressed 
the scholars on the subject, — not only in a 
body, but also in classes, — going around 
for this purpose, as his habit was, from 
pew to pew. Well are his looks and some 
of his words remembered, as he paused be- 
fore a class, composed chiefly of adult pro- 
fessors. 

" The chariot of salvation is rolling on," 
said he, lifting up both his hands, and 
speaking with great animation, a sweet 
smile playing at the same time on his 
cheek. " Are you prepared to step into it? 
Our sister has gone to heaven, like Elijah, 
in the chariot of salvation. We should also 
be ready to go. Come, come, make your- 



152 MEMOIR OF 

selves ready. I longed to step in and go 
with her." 

Soon after this event, he wrote a letter to 
his brother and wife, of Portland, Maine. 
It is the last on which I have been able to 
lay my hands ; and, as throwing some ad- 
ditional light upon his character, and the 
circumstances by which it was developed, 
may properly be introduced here. The 
marriage of his daughter, referred to, took 
place on the 19th of May. The letter itself 
is dated the 25th. 

"Dear Brother, 

" I embrace this opportunity to inform 
you, that we are all well, myself excepted. 
I have been confined to the house for ten 
weeks past ; but my health is better now, 
and improving very fast. It is two years 
since I have done a day's work; but the 
Lord will provide for me. Elizabeth is 
married, and lives in the chambers. Her 
wedding took place last Tuesday. Ade- 
liza keeps my house, so we get along very 



ANDREW LEE. 153 

well. Elizabeth received a letter from you 
recently ; and I was sorry, by it, to hear 
that you are unwell. I hope to make you 
a visit this summer, if my health permit. 
We must learn, dear brother, to put our 
trust in the Lord, at all times. Health 
is a great blessing, and even of this we are 
deprived. We must consider the hand of 
the Lord in the affliction. He has done it 
for our best good, — to draw our minds from 
earth to heaven ; and it will prove a great 
blessing, if it have this effect upon us. My 
advice is, that you put your trust in the 
Lord, both for time and eternity. As for 
myself, dear brother, I am very happy in 
the Lord. I find him a very present help, 
in time of need. All send you their love. 
" Yours, A. L. 

"Dear Sister, 

" I wrote to you about the revival among 
us last year, informing you that many had 
been converted. The Lord, in much mercy, 
has again visited us this spring. About 



154 



MEMOIR OF 



sixty, as we hope, have been savingly 
changed. Not far from twenty of my neigh- 
bors are among the number. Write to me 
soon. I do not forget you, though I have 
not written to you of late. 

" Yours, A. L." 

We were all hoping that the ill health of 
which Mr. Lee complains in the above letter, 
would prove but temporary. We knew 
not how to part with him. We felt that his 
labors were quite indispensable to the pros- 
perity of the church among us. God, 
however, had determined otherwise. For 
nearly a year, indeed, he remained in much 
the same condition. Gradually, however, 
from this time onward, were his labors on 
earth brought to a close. 

One of the last conference meetings held 
in the chapel, that he ever attended, was 
probably in the autumn of this year, and is 
well remembered. He spoke for nearly an 
hour, with great animation, dwelling upon 
his favorite theme. He wished the breth- 



ANDREW LEE. 155 

ren and sisters of the church to arouse up 
to greater activity in their duties to the 
Sabbath school. 

"We who profess to be Christians," 
said he, " should use all our exertions to 
get the children into the Sabbath school, 
and bring them, in this way, to become 
interested in the great truths of religion. 
We realize not how wide and important a 
field of labor we have before us, in this re- 
spect ; and what high obligations are rest- 
ing upon us. The lambs of the flock are 
committed to our charge, and we are called 
on, like Peter, to show our love to the 
Saviour, by the manner in which we take 
care of them. We have every thing, in- 
deed, to stimulate us on, in our exertions. 
We should never fail to remember that 
none of the Israelites were permitted to en- 
ter the promised land, except those who 
were under twenty years of age, when they 
came out of Egypt. All those who had 
grown up in the sins of Egyptian bondage, 
were found unfit for the service of God, in 



156 MEMOIR OF 

the land of promise. The same principle 
holds good at the present day. In order to 
serve God aright, we must begin when we 
are young. Indeed, there is danger, other- 
wise, that we shall not serve him at all. 
Years spent in sin, so harden the heart, as 
to disqualify us for the service of the Lord 
afterwards. They stiffen the neck, so that 
it refuses to wear the gentle yoke of Christ. 
I have observed it to be a rare thing that 
any are converted after they have passed 
the meridian of life. How much we have 
to stimulate us to exertion, in this respect ! 
Nor is this all. Our future citizens, those 
who succeed us, in church and state, are to 
come out of our Sabbath schools. Just in 
proportion, then, as we prove faithful here, 
we are laboring for generations to come, the 
good of our country. Besides, have not 
the heathen been given to the Son of God 
for an inheritance ; and the uttermost parts 
of the earth for a possession? Is not the 
word of God to run and be glorified, until 
the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth, 



ANDREW LEE. 157 

even "as the waters cover the sea 1 And 
how is all this to be brought about ? By- 
means of the Sabbath school. This is the 
organ to be employed; the trumpet, by 
which the Gospel will be proclaimed to the 
ends of the earth. The trumpet will be 
blown from land to land ; and trumpet will 
reach trumpet, by means of the Sabbath 
school, from shore to shore, until the utmost 
boundaries of the globe have been em- 
braced. 

" The missionaries who go forth as swift 
messengers to carry the glad tidings of the 
Gospel, will come out of the Sabbath 
school. Many of those who are now in the 
field, have actually come out of it; and 
more will continue to arise out of it, and 
go forth into all parts of the world, preach- 
ing the Gospel to every creature. These, 
these will be the trumpets. In what a glo- 
rious work, then, brethren and sisters, are 
we engaged ; the most glorious of all works, 
such as angels would love." 

Such is a faint outline of some of his 
14 



158 MEMOIR OF 

thoughts on this occasion. It was an ad- 
dress worthy of being his last. He spoke 
it, with both his hands raised, and his 
countenance glowing with an ardor that 
seemed almost angelic. 

During the winter which followed, vari- 
ous circumstances brought us frequently 
together, in conversations respecting the 
interests of Zion. I made few or no records 
of these interviews. I still retain, however, 
the impressions they left behind. I usually 
found him sitting in his favorite corner, 
with the Bible or the N. E. Puritan, either 
in his hand or at his side ; and occasionally 
the Sabbath School Visiter, lying on his 
table. He was always ready to enter at 
once upon the subject of religion. The 
nearer I got to him, the warmer I found his 
heart beating and glowing with Christian 
love. It was a fountain of living water, 
from which issued streams in every direc- 
tion, expanding continually as they flowed. 
However limited his knowledge might be, 
his love was of that kind, which embraces 



ANDREW LEE. 159 

the whole world. There were cords in his 
bosom that would vibrate to the tones of 
every enterprise, clearly connected with the 
extension of the Redeemer's kingdom. 

On the fourth of the March following, 
General Harrison was inaugurated Presi- 
dent of the United States. He had been a 
Sabbath school teacher; and soon after 
this event, an anecdote was published of 
him, as illustrating this part of his charac- 
ter. During his last out-door exercise, he 
was engaged, as we are told, in assisting 
the gardener in adjusting some grape-vines. 
The gardener remarked that there would be 
but little use in trailing the vines, so far as 
any fruit was concerned, as the boys 
would come on Sunday, while the family 
was at church, and steal all the grapes; 
and suggested to the General, as a guard 
against such a loss, that he should pur- 
chase an active watch-dog. . " Better," said 
the General, u to employ an active Sabbath 
school teacher ; a dog may take care of the 
grapes ; but a good Sabbath school teacher 



160 MEMOIR OF 

will take care of the grapes, and the boys 
too." 

Mr. Lee was exceedingly interested in 
these facts. u O, sister L.," said he, once, 
as he was speaking of the subject, " I have 
prophesied, and said it again and again, 
that the happy day was rolling on, when 
our Presidents, our Senators, Governors, 
Judges, — every man that filled the chair of 
State, — would come out of the Sabbath 
school. And now, blessed be God, I have 
lived to see what I did not expect to. Here 
is our President come as a teacher from the 
Sabbath school. I have lived to see it, — 
blessed be God.' ? 

At one of the last neighborhood meetings 
he ever attended, out of his own house, 
held probably about this time, he is re- 
membered to have been particularly inter- 
esting. He seemed to enter the room in a 
somewhat languid frame of mind. On 
reading a passage of the Bible, however, 
his soul caught fire of the love of God, and 
he began to speak with great fervor of 



ANDREW LEE. 161 

heaven. " Where is this place?" said he. 
"Some think it a great way off. To me, 
it appears close at hand. Its streams run 
right down into my heart." 

During the last part of the spring, or the 
first part of the summer, when many among 
lis who love the Sabbath school, are 
forced to be absent at sea, great trouble 
■was experienced in obtaining Sabbath 
school teachers. Some seemed to have be- 
come altogether discouraged in the work, 
while others wished to excuse themselves 
from engaging in it. Mr. Lee was exceed- 
ingly grieved, when he heard of it. He 
talked most earnestly with those who called 
on him, about the matter ; and finally, in 
hopes of arousing the members of the church 
to their duty, in this respect, he sent them, 
through the hands of the Superintendent; 
the following address on the subject. 

" A LOOK AT THE OTHER END." 

w We should keep our eyes fixed on the 
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162 MEMOIR OF 

other end of things, and act with a constant 
reference to it, in all our labors. The men 
of this world do so, in every occupation; 
and they are evidently right, in so doing. 
It is this that stimulates them to exertion. 

" Of all persons, however, on earth, who 
should keep their eyes fixed on the other 
end, Christians, or Sabbath school teachers 
are such. The Word of God calls them to 
it, as a solemn duty. In no other way can 
they draw encouragement from the future. 
All the great and blessed promises are at 
this other end. To confine our eyes then, 
to present things, is to cut ourselves off 
fromt he powerful influences of Christian 
hope, and sink down in remissness and in- 
activity. We must avoid it, as extremely 
sinful. It is ours to look forward to that 
which is to come, — to see that our work is 
done and well done, with an eye of faith 
continually fixed upon the glory which is 
hereafter to be revealed. Jesus Christ has 
commanded us to feed the lambs of his 
flock, and furnished us with the means of 



ANDREW LEE. 163 

doing it, — placing us in a very pleasant 
part of his vineyard; and, withal, holding 
out before us a heavenly crown in prospect. 
What guilt, then, will rest upon us, if we 
prove negligent ! The day we live in is 
just such an one as kings and prophets 
longed for. Abraham, we are told, obtained 
a sight of it, and rejoiced in beholding it. 

"These good persons did not content them- 
selves with looking on present things; they 
kept their eyes continually fixed on the 
other end. All holy men have done the 
same. The apostles tell us plainly, and in 
a great variety of ways, that it was the 
other end which they were constantly look- 
ing at. Let us, then, who profess to love 
the Lord, follow the hallowed examples 
they have set us ; let us endeavor to obtain 
a fair view of the other end of things. Let 
us draw a stimulus to action, from the glo- 
rious rewards to be conferred upon the 
faithful, arousing ourselves at once to our 
duties as teachers in the Sabbath school, 
being filled with holy zeal for the Lord of 



164 MEMOIR OF 

hosts. Every class having been supplied 
with a teacher, let the remainder of the 
church form themselves into classes for 
mutual instruction, always holding them- 
selves in readiness to meet the first call 
they may have, to supply any vacant 
class, — their hearts, in the meanwhile, beat- 
ing high, and even panting with anxiety, 
for the employment. Far away from us, 
be all low desires and groveling aims. We 
must expect great things. As soon as the 
church becomes alive to the work, we shall 
see that the Lord has, in very deed, great 
things for us. It is an unspeakable privi- 
lege, this of ours, and so we should esteem 
it, to have all the children of this town, — 
provided we will submit to a little self-de- 
nial for its accomplishment, — -brought under 
the influence of religious instruction and 
trained up for the service of God, not only 
in the world that now is, but also in that 
which is to come. Is not their destiny 
lodged with us ? So it would seem. Who 
can persuade himself to the contrary ? The 



ANDREW LEE. 165 

Sabbath school, for them, is the very gate 
of heaven. We believe it. And should 
there, then, be a single class found without 
a teacher ? What ! a class in the Sabbath 
school without a teacher, and that too, in 
this great church? I should think there 
would be two teachers to one class, sooner 
than a single class without a teacher ! ! 
Pray whisper it softly ! O let it never 
again be said, A Sabbath school class with- 
out a teacher. It is a doleful sound in my 
ears. It is time for us to awake, and look 
at the other end of this matter. We are 
anticipating great things in the world 
around us ; but whence are the helpers of 
the Lord to come? Most clearly, from 
among the pupils of our Sabbath schools. 
It is by their aid all the benevolent societies 
of the day are to be carried on. All the 
offices too, of our government, from the 
President's downward, will be filled with 
men from the same source. O joyful day, 
when it comes ! Then will our officers be 
peace, and our exactors righteousness ! And 



166 MEMOIR OF 

shall we ever be permitted to behold it? 
At least it should be our business to live 
and labor for its coming ! 

"Awake, then, ye who profess to be the 
Lord's, to the work of the Sabbath school. 
See that every child is brought into it, and 
every class supplied with a teacher. Look 
to God, who has promised to pour out a 
blessing upon you, taking hold with a will- 
ing mind and a cheerful heart; for it is 
such that our God seeks after for his ser- 
vice. Sow your seed bountifully, and, in 
the end, you will see a rich harvest. Look 
forward to the crowns of glory; think of 
that day when Jesus Christ will make up 
his jewels; think of the words which his 
children are to hear, at last, from his lips, 
pronounced before an assembled universe, 
Well done good and faithful servant ; think 
of all the joys and glories prepared for 
saints in the upper world; think, I say, of 
all these things and ponder them over and 
over, until you find yourselves aroused from 
sleep, and your souls filled with the glory 



ANDREW LEE. 167 

of God. Then look into a Sabbath school, 

and you will say, 

" My heart, my hand, my ear, my tongue, 
Here's joyful work for you !" 

Early in the beginning of this season, it 
became apparent that our friend was not 
long for this world. His feebleness in- 
creased. At the same time, as if to prepare 
him more thoroughly for his change, the 
hand of affliction was, in other ways, laid 
heavily upon him. Elizabeth, who, on the 
eighteenth of May, had presented him with a 
grand-daughter, fell into a decline, and, to 
all human appearance, was fast wasting 
away. This event, of itself, took a strong 
hold of his feelings. What greatly added, 
however, to this affliction for a time, was 
the fact that she was soon found to be in 
deep anxiety respecting her spiritual condi- 
tion. This, after all the good man's strug- 
gles, in prayer for his child, and the hopes 
he had ventured to entertain of her, seemed 
more than he could bear. 

" Acquainted as lam," said he, " with 



168 MEMOIR OF 

her whole religious history, it is impossible 
for me not to feel quite confident of her good 
estate in Christ; but this does not answer 
the purpose, nor at all relieve me of my 
anguish, so long as I find her in painful 
doubts respecting her own salvation." 

His cup of sorrow, however, was not even 
yet filled up. While the mother was in 
this suffering state of body and mind, re- 
quiring the kindness and sympathy of all 
around her, the child itself, to which the 
grandfather had become greatly attached, 
was taken ill of a disease which soon 
brought it to the grave. At about four 
o'clock, on the morning of August the 
23d, it died. 

No one, with these facts before him, will 
be surprised to learn that, when I entered, 
his room, this day, immediately after break- 
fast, I found him in a flood of tears. On 
my attempting to recall to his mind some 
of those precious truths with which he had 
so often endeavored to console others, he re- 
plied, " I know it is all right ; I do not mur- 



ANDREW LEE. 169 

mur. I am, however, passing through the 
fiery furnace ; and nature gives way. My 
grief came over me, all at once, and pressed 
me down to the earth." 

It will not be hard, however, to believe, 
that his tears were soon dried. In a little 
while his countenance had assumed its 
wonted calmness. He had evidently found 
his way to that spring of consolation from 
which he had so often drunk, in seasons of 
affliction before. He had, indeed, still an- 
other trial to pass through, before entering 
the dark valley, — the dying scene of the 
mother herself; but when at length it came, 
it was found tempered with unspeakable 
mercy and love. 

Some reference has already been made 
to Elizabeth, as having had religious exer- 
cises, in a time of sickness, when she was 
a child. In the revival of 1839, as I learn- 
ed from her own lips, she was brought to 
entertain a hope ; and, for about two days, 
she found herself very happy. " Among 
other things," said she, " I remember that a 
15 



170 MEMOIR OF 

change took place in my feelings, respect- 
ing one professor of religion. I had before 
greatly disliked her. I could then embrace 
her in the arms of love." Soon after this, 
she was invited to join the church, but de- 
clined. In the revival of 1840, she was 
again wrought upon, and seemed, for a 
while, to have joy and peace in believing. 
In the course of a few weeks, she was 
again reminded of her duty, to make an 
open profession of Christ, but again begged 
to be excused, — after which, she seemed 
gradually to relapse into a state of luke- 
warmness. "I did not, in either case," 
said she, " regularly persevere in prayer." 
During the last winter, when both she 
and her husband had felt much on the sub- 
ject of religion, she had been brought to re- 
pentance, as she hoped, for this neglect; 
and renewed her habit of holding secret 
communion with God, — becoming, as she 
thought, in a manner, weaned from the 
world. During the earlier stages of her 
disease, she seemed to rest, in the main, 



ANDREW LEE. 171 

satisfied with herself, as on a good founda- 
tion ; and once she expressed a desire to be 
united with the church. In proportion, 
however, as she came to look more nar- 
rowly into eternity, from her bed of sick- 
ness, all her hopes were shaken to their 
very foundation. 

On calling in to see her, on the second 
of August, at her father's especial request, 
I found her, like a drowning person, still 
clinging to life. " Does not James," said 
she, u speak of the prayer of faith as saving 
the sick ? Why is it that there are no per- 
sons now who can make this prayer." In 
reply, I told her, that unquestionably there 
are such persons, in the present age ; that 
as the finger which puts out the spark 
which would have set a whole city or wil- 
derness on fire, is often unseen, — so many 
of the prayers of God's people are alto- 
gether unobserved in their effects; that 
moreover, God has different ways of an- 
swering the prayer of faith ; that he can 
either remove the mountain out of our 



172 MEMOIR OF 

way, or else raise us up above it; and 
carry us over it by the floods of his grace, — 
or even bestow upon us the virtue of con- 
tentment, in the midst of difficulty and 
embarrassment; that even Paul, when he 
prayed for a removal of the thorn in his 
flesh, had not had his request granted, ex- 
cept by a fulfillment of the promise, u My 
grace is sufficient for thee;" that the Sav- 
iour had found himself in the same condi- 
tion in Gethsemane ; and by his example 
there, had taught us to pray, a Not my 
will, but thine be done;" in addition to 
which. I endeavored to show her how 
ignorant we all are, as to what is for the 
best, in any given case, and how much rea- 
son there is, why we should submit to God. 
On the 17th of August, I found her mind 
had been somewhat relieved of its spiritual 
anxieties. She had experienced, at times, 
a measure of comfort in religion ; and, for 
a while, felt that she wanted to depart. 
She also bore the death of her child better 
than was anticipated ; and seemed to have 



ANDREW LEE. 173 

lost none of her encouraging feelings. In- 
deed, from this time onward, though oc- 
casionally I had my fears respecting her, 
she gave increasing evidence, that she had 
reached that river which makes glad the 
city of God, and was feeding in the green 
pastures, and drinking of the still waters of 
redeeming love. Of course, then, I was not 
sorry, as our communion season approached, 
to receive from her, through her father, a 
request to have some conversation with 
me about joining the church. She said 
"that nothing but shame had prevented 
her from joining it long before, — a fear of 
her companions, united with a love for the 
world ; and that she wished to give proof 
of her repentance of this sin, and do what 
she could to guard others against a similar 
error. She was willing, however, to leave 
the whole subject with her Christian friends. 
She wished to do that only which should 
seem most for the glory of God. 77 It was 
thought best, after due consideration, to 
comply with her wishes. 
15* 



174 MEMOIR OF 

Accordingly, at noon, on the Sabbath of 
September the 5th, a few of us assembled 
around her sick bed, — received her declara- 
tions of repentance and faith, entering into 
covenant with her in behalf of the church, 
while she gave herself away to be the 
Lord's, forever, — directly after which, we 
united together in the celebration of re- 
deeming love. 

She had been looking forward to the 
scene with much delight, the evening be- 
fore. She had a comfortable measure of 
the divine presence, as she felt, during the 
service itself, though not such a degree of 
it, she said, as she had anticipated. How 
much her father rejoiced, may be left for 
others to imagine. To the rest of us, it 
was an occasion of solemnity, not soon to 
be forgotten. We retired to publish the 
transaction to the world, feeling that if ever 
we met with her again, for a similar cele- 
bration, it must be beyond the grave. 

Nor were we disappointed. In returning 
from my walk, on the morning of Septem- 



ANDREW LEE. 175 

ber the 9th, I found she had gone precisely 
at one o'clock, — but oh, how peaceful, how 
happy ! Just before her departure, her hus- 
band had the following conversation with 
her: 

H. Do you think you are dying ? 

W. I hope I am. I long to be where I 
can see God, and praise him, free from sin. 

H. Have you a good hope ? 

W. I think I have, or I should never 
long to go ; should 1 9 

H. I think you are right. We are no 
where told that the wicked long to see God. 
Are you perfectly willing to die ? 

" In reply," says her husband, " she look- 
ed upon me with an expression full of 
meaning, and said, 'Yes, I long to go. 
Where is death? Is it nigh ? Is it nigh?'" 

H. I told her I thought it was. 

W. How do you know it is ? 

H. I told her I thought, from the ap- 
pearances, that death was nigh. Don't 
you feel gloomy to think you are dying? 

W. No, no ! I feel happy. 



176 MEMOIR OF 

H. Can you say this is the happiest day 
you ever experienced? 

W. I know it will be, if I die. 

H. Have you no fears of death ? 

W. No ! where is death ? 

H. I told her to be patient; God's time 
was the best time. In a few moments she 
said, ' Oh, how much longer, how much 
longer V 

H. I told her she was nigh to the gate 
of heaven. In a few minutes she said : 
1 Yes, I am going, I am going.' I repeated 
to her the hymn, 

" When I can read my title clear," 
and also the words, 

u Jesus can make a dying bed," 

asking her if she could witness to their 
truths? She replied, "Yes." I asked her 
if she could speak one more word before 
she went. She made one struggle and 
said, " Happy, happy, happy!" then whis- 
pered, " I am dying. Can this be Jesus?" 
When she had become past speaking and 



ANDREW LEE. 177 

lay with her eyes fixed upon us, I asked 
her if she could see the light of heaven, to 
press my hand ; and she did it very gently 
with her fore-finger."^ 

In a few moments her heart had ceased 
to beat ; and the spirit had taken its flight 
to the bright glories of him who gave it. 
Was it possible for her father to mourn for 
her? "No," said he, if not in the very 
words, yet in the very same spirit of the 
excellent John Newton, in a similar case, 
"I am perfectly satisfied. I feel that I 
cannot possibly ask for any thing more. 
Now my largest desires for her are accom- 
plished. The days of her mourning are 
ended. She is landed on that peaceful 
shore, where the storms of trouble never 
blow. She is forever out of the reach of 
sorrow, sin, temptation, and snares. Now 
she is before the throne; she sees him 
whom not having seen, she loved; she 
drinks of the rivers of pleasure which are 
at his right hand, and shall thirst no more." 



* See N. E. Puritan, Nov. 11th, 1841. 



178 MEMOIR OF 

The father had, indeed, but little reason 
to mourn for his daughter. She had not 
only gone to a better world, but he, in a 
few short days more, would follow after 
her. His body was not only greatly wasted 
away, but his spirit seemed to be pluming 
its wings, more and more, for its flight. 
Many had been the pleasing interviews 
which myself and others had had with 
him, during the summer. They increased 
in number and interest, in proportion as he 
drew near to the tomb. To converse with 
him was almost like holding communion 
with a spirit from another world. To give 
an outline of a few of these conversations is 
nearly all that can now be done. 

In the midst of the summer's heat, a sis- 
ter of the church called upon him, when he 
began to converse about the Sabbath school, 
expressing his wonder that Christians could 
remain so indifferent to its welfare. " O, 
sister L.," said he, " I should think myself 
happy, if I could only go down to the Sab- 



ANDREW LEE. 179 

bath school, and pass from pew to pew, 
fanning the flies away from the children, 
while they studied the Bible, even though 
unable to utter a word." 

At an interview which I had with him, 
on the forenoon of August the 18th, he 
remarked to me, soon after I entered, that 
he had been thinking about charity, but 
especially the necessity of controlling the 
tongue. " We exceedingly abuse," said he, 
"this noble gift of God. It is amazing, 
when we consider it, to discover how much 
corrupt matter comes out of our mouths." 

Soon after the death of his grand-child, 
the same sister of the church above referred 
to, called on him, and had a conversation 
with him about it. She found his heart 
very tender on the subject. He had not 
only greatly loved it, but often amused 
himself in playing with it, saying to those 
who entered, that he hoped they would yet 
see it in the Sabbath school. u Sister L.," 
said he, on this occasion, " to the un think- 



180 MEMOIR OF 

ing, it seems a strange thing, that this babe 
should be brought into existence, only to 
live for a few days, and then die. ' What 
good,' say they, 'could it do? Was there 
any thing to be accomplished by such an 
event?' They regard it as altogether an 
unmeaning providence. They wonder why 
any body should mourn for it, when it is 
gone. It appears to me, in a different light. 
Nothing is farther from being unmeaning^ 
or insignificant than this. Unquestionably 
the visit of this child to the world, was a 
great link in the purposes of God ; and, in 
eternity, it will be discovered that there was 
something of vast importance connected, 
not only with its life, but also with its 
death." 

About the last of August, at one of our 
interviews, he spent much of his time in 
conversing with me respecting the state of 
the church, — greatly lamenting the cold- 
ness of professors, and expressing strong 
desires to have them awake and draw near 



ANDREW LEE. 181 

to God. He spoke at some length on the 
subject, pouring out the feelings of his 
heart, with great fervor; and entreating 
me to deal faithfully with them. A sermon 
that I preached immediately after, from 
Luke 22 : 46, was prompted by what he 
said to me. I find no notes, however, of 
the conversation, except such as I inter- 
wove into his funeral discourse, the extract 
containing which, will be given at the close 
of this memoir. 

On the 19th of October, after having 
been out of town for a fortnight, I had an- 
other sweet interview with him. He seem- 
ed to have been meditating on fear, as an 
element of Christian character ; at least our 
conversation turned chiefly on this subject. 
The train of ideas was that suggested by 
Fawcett, respecting Baxter, in his preface 
to this man's Dying Thoughts, Abridged, 
American Tract Society Edition, — a work 
which Mr. Lee always kept at hand, dur- 
ing his sickness, — namely : 
16 



182 



MEMOIR OF 



"See here his doubts and fears in the 
prospect of eternity ; though he had spent 
a long life in exemplary holiness, and in 
great nearness to God and heaven. See his 
jealousies over his own heart, and anxious 
concern to discover his sincerity; together 
with his sober appeals and earnest attention 
to every dictate of reason and Scripture, in 
order to establish his mind and conscience 
in a well-grounded peace." 

I had never had so full a conversation 
with him on the subject before. Our views 
were alike. We did not doubt that all true 
believers have, at times, unclouded visions 
of divine things, like Christian and Hope- 
ful from the top of the Hill called Clear. 
We readily admitted that the path of the 
righteous is, in general, as the shining light, 
growing brighter and brighter unto the 
perfect day. We did not at all question 
the possibility of attaining to a permanent 
assurance of one's good estate in Christ, 
this side the grave. We felt, however, that 



ANDREW LEE. 



183 



from the very nature of the Christian war- 
fare, hope and fear must, for the most part, 
go together in this world ; and that, while 
there may be fears enough without any 
grace; the old adage, " No fears, no grace," 
has a solid foundation in truth, especially 
in respect to all those who may be regarded 
as beginners in divine things, — having just 
girded on the armor, — and even until a 
long life spent in the service of Christ, has 
brought us to a thorough acquaintance 
with the evils of our own hearts ; constancy 
in prayer; steadiness of aim, in living to 
the glory of God ; and that state of perma- 
nent love and heavenly contemplation, 
which characterized the latter days of Rivet, 
Halyburton, Janeway, Finley, Payson, 
and others; and which Bunyan, in his 
Pilgrim's Progress, has so finely described 
as arriving at the land of Beulah. 

On Monday, the 25 th of October, at 
about ten o'clock in the morning, I had 
another interview with him. I found him 



184 MEMOIR OF 

bolstered up in his bed as usual. Our con- 
versation was long, and interesting; but 
much of it, of such a private nature and 
individual bearing, as not to be revealed. 
He had informed himself in respect to the 
various religious exercises of the Sabbath, 
as he was in the habit of doing. " David," 
said he, meaning his son-in-law, " tells me 
all about those things." He then gave me 
a minute account of the spiritual condition 
of the various members of his family, — 
speaking of them with great tenderness and 
affection. He then said to me, " I had a 
visit yesterday, from several of my old im- 
penitent friends," calling the individuals 
by name. I afterwards learned that he had 
sent messages expressly for them, saying, 
they must call on him soon if they wished 
to see him again in this world. u The 
Lord," continued he, " enabled me to be 
faithful to them. It seems to me that he 
gave me strength yesterday, for the very 
purpose of conversing with these men. 



ANDREW LEE. 185 

They received what I said very kindly, 
and thanked me for it, when they left me." 

We then reverted to human insufficiency 
in matters of religion. "You must be 
guided," said he to me, "by the Holy 
Spirit in all you do. Strive after his pres- 
ence, in your own soul ; and endeavor to 
act under his gracious influences, in your 
labors for God. Carry him with you, in 
your heart, when you visit from house to 
house. There is constant danger of becom- 
ing cold and formal in our duties.' 7 

His words brought a passage of Dr. Pay- 
son, at once to my mind, namely, "The 
point in which I believe ministers generally 
fail most, and in which I have certainly 
failed most, is in doing duty professionally, 
and not from the heart." We then glanced 
at the Sabbath school. He deeply lamented 
the remissness of some of the teachers, in 
respect to conversing with their pupils, on 
the subject of religion. " The children," 
said he, "expect such conversation; and 
16* 



186 MEMOIR OF 

are disappointed if they do not have it. 
They love those teachers the best, who 
deal the most faithfully with their souls. 
And yet there are professors engaged in 
that school, who altogether neglect that 
duty. They seem to be worldly minded, 
and given up to present enjoyment. I have 
talked with some of them on the subject, 
and they received me kindly ; but continue 
to go on, and do just as they did before. 
"The Sabbath school," said he, "the 
Sabbath school, O, how I love it ! When 
they wished me to become superintendent, 
I knew not how to leave my class, I loved 
it so much. It is most delightful employ- 
ment, this business of teaching in the Sab- 
bath school." 

From this subject we passed to his neigh- 
borhood meeting, — respecting which he 
gave me the results of his experience, in 
times gone by, and advised as to what he 
thought would be best for the future. He 
had already conversed freely in private, 
with some of the brethren on the subject. 



ANDREW LEE. 187 

I then made him acquainted with a par- 
ticular trial I had lately been called to pass 
through. His reply was, "you must not 
let such things worry you. You must 
trust in the Lord, marching right on, in 
the path of duty. Follow his directions, 
looking to him for strength. That is all 
you have to do. Every thing else, is to be 
left in his hands." 

Here again, it was hardly possible for 
me to avoid recalling to mind what Dr. 
Pay son said to his daughter, when he was 
on his dying bed. "You will avoid much 
pain and anxiety, if you will learn to trust 
all your concerns in God's hand. Cast 
all your care upon him, for he careth for 
you. Trust him for abilities, success, every 
thing, — and you will never have reason to 
repent it." 

Intermixed with these different topics, 
he dropped many kind suggestions to my- 
self, as to how I could preserve my health, 
charging me to exercise caution in this 
respect. 



188 MEMOIR OF 

I then proposed prayer. " The family," 
said he, "are washing. We will have a 
prayer by ourselves. I then knelt down 
by his bed-side and prayed with him. It 
was a sweet season. Our whole interview 
had been most precious. The savor of it 
remains behind, while I write, as though it 
were but yesterday. I arose and clasped 
his hand to take my leave of him. " The 
Lord be with you," said he. " And the 
Lord be with you," was my reply. We 
parted, to meet no more, until we meet in 
eternity. 

The next morning, at about twenty 
minutes before nine, word came to me that 
my friend had been thought in a dying 
condition, all the night. I hastened imme- 
diately to his house, but it was too late. 
He had already been dead nearly half an 
hour. His spirit was doubtless just enter- 
ing upon its eternal glories. I could only 
gaze after him, in thought and feeling, 



ANDREW LEE. 189 

praying that his mantle might fall upon the 
church, which he had left behind. 

He was buried October the 28th. The 
Sabbath school, with an unusually large 
procession of his townsmen, accompanied 
his remains to the grave. 



190 MEMOIR OF 



CONCLUSION. 

We have now followed our friend to the 
close of his career. That he was, in some 
respects, deficient, no one who understands 
human nature, will feel disposed to ques- 
tion. 

He labored, as many others do, under 
serious disadvantages, for not having im- 
proved his mind sufficiently, in his youth. 
Good early training would doubtless have 
greatly added to his usefulness. 

He also failed to attend sufficiently to 
the doctrines of the Bible, — carrying them 
out in his thoughts, and contemplating 
them, in their various practical bearings. 
Greater clearness and thoroughness, in 
this respect, however Mr. Lee got along 
safely without them, are, for the generality 
of Christians, exceedingly desirable, and, in 
many cases, altogether indispensable. At 
the same time, he allowed himself to be 
governed too much, like most persons of 



ANDREW LEE. 191 

his education and temperament, by mere 
internal feelings and impressions, — a rule 
of action, fraught, in its tendencies, with 
unspeakable danger. 

Nor should it escape notice, that, for 
much of his excellence, he was indebted to 
a happy constitution. I am not aware 
that he ever had any strong passion to 
contend with; or moroseness, or quickness 
of temper, to guard against, or overcome. 
I have never heard of his losing himself in 
a fit of anger, or passing beyond a slight 
impatience of look and voice. On the 
other hand, he was of a gentle make, both 
in body and mind, and, from childhood, 
noted for the amiableness of his disposition. 
Withal, he had a ready wit, and an easy 
utterance, combined with great sociable- 
ness, which rendered him a most agreeable 
companion. In all these respects, then, he 
had been greatly blessed by nature. She 
had done so much for him, that, in the es- 
timate of the world, there was little or 
nothing left for grace to do. 



192 MEMOIR OF 

It is not to be concealed, however, after 
all, that it was grace, which rendered him 
substantially what he was. Under its in- 
fluence he became quite a different man, 
from what he had ever been before. He 
had been a Universalist, fond of controver- 
sy, full of self-righteousness, formal in all 
his devotions, and given up to the pursuits 
of the world. His conviction of sin, how- 
ever, was long, deep, and thorough, — 
crushing him down in the very dust 
before God, and bringing him, in entire 
self-renunciation, to cry out for mercy, 
through the merits alone, of the Lord Je- 
sus Christ. And then, when deliverance 
came, — what a wonderful deliverance it 
was! Gospel light shone clearly around 
him; divine love took firm possession of his 
heart. Not Bunyan's Pilgrim had more 
obviously lost his burden at the foot of the 
cross. He began at once to run the 
Christian race; and to give himself up, as 
best he could, to the service of the king- 
dom of heaven, until called away to his 



ANDREW LEE. 193 

rest. Limited as was his sphere of action, 
if we inspect him closely, we shall find 
him in many respects, standing forth as an 
example for imitation. 

His prominent traits may be summed up 
as follows : 

In the first place, so far as his creed de- 
veloped itself, he was evidently a believer 
in the doctrines of grace. There were one 
or two of the more abstruse points, indeed, 
respecting which, for some time, he ex- 
pressed doubts. These, however, seem 
gradually to have disappeared, as he ad- 
vanced in the divine life ; and we at length 
find him speaking as one who had become 
firmly established. 

The Christian, in his estimation, should 
be no idle character. There is work 
enough, and some of it hard, for him to do. 
He is to live a life of godliness, here on 
earth. He is to show himself constantly 
engaged in his master's business. He is 
earnestly to strive after growth in grace. 
He has left the city of destruction behind, 
17 



194 MEMOIR OF 

and should hasten on his way to mount 
Zion. He has risen with Christ, and must 
seek the things that are above, where 
Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 

He himself, however, put no confidence 
in the flesh. He was, as he felt, a lost sin- 
ner, and had no hope but that which came 
from faith in a crucified Saviour. The 
Holy Spirit had begun, and must complete 
the great work of salvation in his heart. 
Through the sovereign mercy of God alone, 
it was, that he expected to obtain admit- 
tance into heaven at last. The only song 
he expected to sing forever, was that of all 
the redeemed, '•• Not unto us, O Lord, but 
to thy name be the glory." 

In the second place, Mr. Lee greatly 
abounded in Christian love. This was the 
secret spring of the man, rather than any 
mere system of doctrines, thoroughly 
wrought out, and harmoniously arranged. 
Indeed, remembering how much he himself 
had delighted in controversy, while a Uni- 
versalist, he generally held himself aloof 



ANDREW LEE. 195 

from topics of conversation, that might lead 
to it; and hence from all disputed points 
in doctrine. Religion with him was a mat- 
ter of the heart, and life. It had its origin 
in love to God and man. It was composed 
entirely of this love, carried out, in all the 
feelings and exercises of the soul. To the 
voice of this love, he was ready to listen. 
Whatever she required of him, he would 
do. Just so far as she led him, he would 
go. That which squared with her rule 
was right, and pleased him. Every thing 
that deviated from it was wrong, and 
greatly afflicted his heart. This was the 
essence of his creed. Of course he was 
very watchful over the church, for the 
abounding of love among its members ; and 
very naturally apt to judge too favorably 
of those who apparently acted under its 
influence; while, on the other hand, he 
was extremely jealous of every thing that 
seemed of a contrary tendency. That he 
was also a peace-maker, may readily be 
inferred. There would be no discord among 



196 MEMOIR OF 

neighbors, if he could prevent it. Even 
enemies, under his influence, would soon 
lay aside their hatred. " Should brother 
Lee find himself in hell," it was once said 
of him, "he would go about reconciling 
the different parties together." 

In the third place, Mr. Lee as a Christian 
was inclined to look on the bright side of 
things. That he had hours of darkness, 
has already been seen. Sometimes, as his 
intimate friends well know, he was almost 
overwhelmed with them. Darkness, how- 
ever, was not the prevailing state of his 
mind. Never, in times of health, did he 
relinquish himself to its influence. Seldom, 
indeed, would he go so far as even to speak 
of it, except to his most intimate friends. 
On the other hand, he would immediately 
try to disperse it by private meditation, 
prayer, and reading the Bible ; or by going 
right about some Christian duty, such as 
visiting the sick, warning impenitent sin- 
ners, or engaging in conversation with 
professors of religion. He would say to 



ANDREW LEE. 197 

others, coming to him, in such a state, and 
complaining in his ears, " well, we had bet- 
ter keep that to ourselves. We shall find 
more relief, in such circumstances, by going 
to the Bible, and running to God for deliv- 
erance, than from any thing that others 
can do for us." Of course, his language to 
his brethren was generally of an encour- 
aging nature, especially in the conference 
room. The sick, also, and the afflicted, in 
him found a son of consolation. To the 
impenitent even, he resembled John, speak- 
ing constantly of love, rather than Paul, 
making use of the terrors of the Lord, to 
persuade men. In short, he was clearly 
averse to a gloomy piety, — believing that, 

" The hill of Zion yields, 

A thousand sacred sweets ; 
Before we reach the heavenly fields, 
Or walk the golden streets." 

He could not bear the idea of living always 
among the tombs. 

In the fourth place, Mr. Lee took especial 
delight in the social duties of religion. 
17* 



198 MEMOIR OF 

There is no reason, indeed, to suspect him 
of having been at all deficient in love for 
those that are private. On the other hand, 
he was pre-eminently of the reflective turn ; 
and, as is the case with all true Christians, 
extremely fond of holding communion with 
God, all alone, in the closet. Many too 
were the sweet seasons of enjoyment which 
he evidently had with his Maker on such 
occasions. He has spoken freely of some 
of them in his journal. At one of our last 
interviews, he farther intimated that he 
had had discoveries of heavenly things at 
such times, which he had written but little 
or nothing about, and had never lisped any 
thing of, to a single person on earth. There 
are Christians, however, whose religion has 
far more of the retired in it, than the social. 
Mr. Lee was not one of them, but the op- 
posite. He dearly loved the conference 
meeting, and the little circle of prayer. He 
thirsted to meet with those who bear the 
name of Jesus ; and esteemed a day in the 
courts of the Lord, better than a thousand. 



ANDREW LEE. 199 

To be deprived of the privilege of going to 
meeting, he felt to be a great cross. Merely 
to enter an assembly of those who were en- 
gaged in prayer and praise, would often 
prove enough to disperse the thickest 
spiritual darkness, and kindle up his soul 
with redeeming love. 

In the fifth place, Mr. Lee bore the wel- 
fare of Zion continually on his heart. His 
feelings were, "If I forget thee, O Jerusa- 
lem, let my right hand forget her cunning. 
If I do not remember thee, let my tongue 
cleave to the roof of my mouth." Of course 
he was constantly laboring in whatever 
way he could for the good of the church to 
which he belonged. It has already been 
said, that he was acquainted with the 
spiritual condition of all the families in the 
place ; and also that he made it a point to 
go round from time to time and converse 
with every individual, about the concerns 
of his soul. To those with whom he had 
been more intimately associated in the days 
of his sinfulness, he was particularly atten- 



200 MEMOIR OF 

tive. making it his rule to have a religious 
conversation with them, at least once a 
year ; and as much oftener as circumstan- 
ces would permit. He allowed to escape 
him, few opportunities that presented, for 
the introduction of his favorite theme. Nor 
was he awkward in doing it. Nothing 
could be more appropriate than the man- 
ner in which he brought it about. He 
would come along and tap a cold hearted 
brother on the shoulder, gently calling him 
to account for his remissness, and saying, 
"It is high time for you to awake out of 
sleep." He would so avail himself of some 
incident, or event, that it was impossible 
not to feel interested in him, or be taken 
with his mode of address. " Will those 
boots do me service, if I get them re- 
paired," said to him one day a young 
man, who was not often seen in the house 
of God. " Yes," was his ready reply, " if 
you keep them in pliant order, and wear 
them to meeting every Sabbath." It is be- 
lieved that nearly every person who has 



ANDREW LEE. 201 

been for any length of time, an inhabitant 
of Manchester, can call to mind some inter- 
view of Mr. Lee with him, on the things of 
eternity. 

Curious to ascertain whether it were 
really so or not, I made various inquiries 
on the subject, not long since, of individuals 
whom I chanced to meet. The question 
was put in different forms, according to the 
character addressed. u O yes/ 7 was the 
reply of one, u he conversed with me again 
and again, until he got tired out with me, 
and fairly gave me up. 77 "Oyes," said 
another, " it was his conversation with me 
that first called up my attention to the im- 
portance of an interest in Christ. He told 
me of my sinfulness ; pointing me at the 
same time to the Saviour, and assuring me 
that I should be lost without him. and 
praying with me. From that moment I 
began to pray for myself, in secret." " Soon 
after I hoped I was converted/' said a 
third, "he came to me and asked me how 
I got along ; to which I replied, not very 



202 MEMOIR OF 

well." " O, I know how it is with you," 
said he. " Religion has its different degrees. 
The earlier ones you understand, but you 
find the others wholly unintelligible," illus- 
trating his meaning at the same time, in 
his own peculiar way, by measuring off the 
distance on his arm. " Just so it was with 
me twelve years ago. An aged Christian 
came along, and conversed with me ; but it 
was all darkness. Nor was it until day 
before yesterday, that I found myself fully 
able to witness to the truth of some of her 
remarks." Such is a specimen of these 
recollections; and similar ones might be 
brought together, to an almost indefinite 
extent. 

As to the efforts he made to be useful in 
a more public way, — the smaller meetings 
of the society, and the Sabbath school, — 
what has already been said must suffice. 

In regard to the operations of the day, 
for spreading the Gospel over the world, — 
although he had not been trained to en- 
larged views, yet he readily took in the 



ANDREW LEE. 203 

missionary idea, in all its extension; and 
fully recognized the obligations of Christians 
to do all they can for the salvation of the 
world. It was only necessary to show him 
the bearings of a cause, in this point of 
view, in order to bring him to enter at once 
into its spirit. His soul could embrace 
every thing that related to the good of the 
Redeemer's kingdom. Nor was it theory 
alone with him, a mere utterance of the 
petition, " Thy kingdom come.' 5 He en- 
tered into the practice of the thing, so far 
as he thought circumstances would permit. 
He had changed greatly as a Christian, here 
also, from what he had been in his former 
state. He seldom sent the collector away 
empty from his door. He was greatly 
grieved when he heard of professors, who 
were in the habit of so doing. 

And then what shall be said of the influ- 
ence that is exerted by such a man, in a 
way silent and unseen ! His example 
speaks. His actions testify. He fills the 
atmosphere around him with the sweet 



204 MEMOIR OF 

savor of holiness. The good love him. 
The wicked shrink away from his pres- 
ence. He resembles the little spring that 
bubbles forth from the hill-side, and steals 
its way along through the meadows and 
plains, spreading verdure and fragrance 
wherever it comes. An extract from the 
discourse occasioned by his death, founded 
on Phil. 1 : 21, will perhaps best bring out 
some of the preceding traits, and constitute 
a suitable close to this memoir. 

" We have recently been called, my 
brethren, to part with one, of whom I may 
say, I think, without fear of contradiction^ 
that, during all the last years of his life ? 
for him to live toas indeed Christ. Failings 
doubtless he had; but very uncommon 
were his Christian excellencies. At least y 
if he were not a true follower of the Lamb 
of God, I know not who is. The work of 
the Holy Spirit in him appeared from the 
very outset, to be deep and thorough. The 
arrows of conviction pierced his very heart; 
and when the news of pardon came, he 



ANDREW LEE. 205 

seemed to have been set free from the great 
burden of his sins forever, and really to 
have entered into the kingdom of heaven. 
From that moment he became sensitively- 
alive to every thing sinful; and made 
Christian integrity and uprightness, the 
grand purpose of all his thoughts and ac- 
tions ; from that moment he gave evidence 
of the possession of holy affections. I ap- 
peal to his walk and conversation among 
you, in proof of what I say. Who has ever 
been heard to complain of him, as hard, or 
at all overbearing ? Could he not always 
be appealed to, as an Israelite, in whom 
there was no guile, — as one who lived up 
to his profession ? Did he not always evince 
kindness and amiableness of disposition, 
and show himself interested in the good of 
his fellow creatures, the cause of the Re- 
deemer i 

■ i How much he loved the conference meet- 
ing, the house of prayer, and the holy 
place of worship ! You know he was found 



18 



206 MEMOIR OF 

constantly in these places as long as his 
health would permit. You remember the 
tones of his voice, the affectionateness of his 
manner, the fervor of his petitions, the 
solemn earnestness of his exhortations, and 
his devotional appearance in the sanctuary. 
" How anxious he seemed for the salvation 
of each of your souls ! Did he not often 
converse with you individually on the sub- 
ject ; and point you to the cross ; and en- 
deavor to impress you with the importance 
of eternal things: and to lead you to the 
fountain of atoning blood ? Can you soon 
forget what he said to you, while he was 
yet with you ; will you disregard his dying 
counsel, and last prayers for your sal- 
vation ? 

" And then the Sabbath school, the dear 
Sabbath school,— how much he loved it ! 
It was one of the grand themes of his 
meditation. He talked, he prayed, he wept 
about it. He mourned that some of its 
teachers had no more spiritual life. He 



ANDREW LEE. 207 

would gladly have lived longer to labor for 
this alone. It constituted a prominent part 
of his conversation, in the last intercourse 
I ever had with him on earth, as it had 
often done before. ' Why do the teachers,' 
said he to me, one time and another, ' feel 
no more for the salvation of their pupils ? 
How cold-hearted are some of our profes- 
sors, — altogether wrapt up in the world, 
and wholly bent upon present enjoyment ! 
Why will they not awake to the duties of 
religion, the contemplation of eternal excel- 
lencies ? Tell them, O, tell them faithfully 
from the pulpit, the dangers of their course, 
how much they dishonor their Lord and 
Master. Tell them faithfully, whether they 
will hear, or will forbear. I have talked 
with some of them, and found them cold. 
Their souls are not broken down in hu- 
mility. Their hearts do not glow with 
redeeming love. They seem like Ephraim, 
wholly joined to idols.' 
"And then as to temperance, he loved this 



208 MEMOIR OF 

cause too. How readily he signed the 
pledge of total abstinence, when it was 
presented to him ! How anxious he was to 
bring all his neighbors to sign it, and 
especially to have a cold water army formed 
in the Sabbath school % 

And then as to the various objects of 
Christian benevolence in general ; there 
was no hanging back from them on his 
part. His hands and his heart were open 
to them all. He felt even for the distant 
heathen, and had a missionary spirit to 
pray and contribute in their behalf. His 
soul, indeed, was expansive in all its feel- 
ings. It stopped short of nothing, but the 
boundaries of the Redeemer's kingdom. 
Like an ocean wave, it rolled onward, 
until it covered the earth, and reached the 
shores of eternity. 

" But he has left us ! We shall see his 
face no more, in this world. How great a 
loss have we all sustained in his death ! 

" Children of the Sabbath school, you have 



ANDREW LEE. 209 

lost one who loved you dearly ! and bore 
you night and day on his heart; and 
prayed constantly for your salvation. Will 
you not call him to mind, while you live ; 
and remember what he said to you when 
he was with you, and endeavor to follow 
after him, so far as he followed after 
Christ? 

" Impenitent sinners, opposers of the truth, 
you have lost one who dealt faithfully with 
you in love ; and warned you of the danger 
of sin, — the folly of Scripture perversion ; 
and pointed you to the Lamb of God. 
Would you not wish to die as peaceful ? 
Then you must prove as penitent, and live 
as faithful. 

"Dear brethren of the Church, our loss is 
also great ! How much depended in olden 
time, upon individual supplication. When 
Moses prayed, the kindlings of Almighty 
wrath assuaged ; mercy prevailed; the an- 
gry clouds dispersed ; all became calm and 
serene. And how much depends, in modern 
18* 



210 MEMOIR OF 

times, upon a few faithful ones ? It is their 
example that warns, and blesses, and brings 
others to think, and feel, and act for Christ. 
It is their prayers that call down the Holy 
Spirit. It is their alms that move the 
Church, and send the Gospel over the 
earth. 

"We, my brethren, have lost one, upon 
whose prayers we greatly depended. His 
voice we have reason to suppose often pre- 
vailed with heaven for us; and opened 
springs for us, through the grace of God, in 
the desert; and brought down fertilizing 
showers upon the parched earth ! How 
great then, how very great is our loss ! 
Who has caught his mantle, and will bow 
for us before God, in his place ? 

"And as for myself, — I cannot tell you 
what I have felt on this subject. How pleas- 
ant had our intercourse become. How pre- 
cious, in particular, was our last interview ! 
We talked, we wept, we prayed together, — 
all, all about the things of the kingdom, — 



ANDREW LEE. 211 

as if standing on the borders of eternity ; 
and yet I dreamed not that we were now 
to separate forever, here on earth. I have 
lost a Christian counsellor, a faithful friend. 
How sweet in times of sadness, have I 
found his words of consolation ! Farewell, 
dear departed brother ! very pleasant hast 
thou been unto me ; but, — farewell ! 

" Great indeed is my loss, and yours also, 
dear brethren, in his departure ; but how 
much reason have we to rejoice, after all ! 
Our loss is unquestionably his gain. He is 
now with Christ, and with his dear brethren 
and sisters gone before him, — engaged in 
the employments of heaven. This is better, 
far better, than to be here. 

"Would you all meet him again? You 
must believe in the same Saviour; and give 
your hearts in like manner away to his ser- 
vice ; and love the cause of benevolence as 
he loved it ; and think of the monthly con- 
cert, and of the poor heathen as much ; and 
make it your grand business to build up 



212 MEMOIR OF ANDREW LEE. 

the Redeemer's kingdom around you while 
you live. 

" Consider your ways then, before it be too 
late ! ' Mark the perfect man, and behold 
the upright, for the end of that man is 
peace.' " 



213 



NOTE. 

The spot where the remains of Mr. Lee 
repose, in the grave yard of his native vil- 
lage, side by side with those of his wife, is 
marked by a double marble slab, on which, 
in parallel columns, are the following in- 
scriptions, of his own dictation. 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

MRS. FANNY LEE, 

BORN 
MAY 28, 1794, 

DIED 
JAN. 19, 1838. 



214 
a jc r je ir 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

MR. ANDREW LEE, 

BORN 

SEPT. 1, 1790, 

DIED 
OCT. 26, 1841. 



United in life, not divided in death; but 
thanks be to God which giveth us the vic- 
tory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 



215 



Near the entrance of the yard, on the 
left, sleeps the remains of their friends, — 
the spot being marked with a similar mar- 
ble slab, on which, also in parallel columns, 
are the following inscriptions : 



Qatxzb 



TO THE MEMORY OF 



SALLY ALLEN, 



WHO DIED 



MAY 24th, 1838; 
aged 34 years. 



216 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

FORSTER ALLEN, 

WHO DIED 

MARCH 21st, 1839; 
aged 36 years. 



" They were lovely and pleasant in their 
lives and in their deaths were not long di- 
vided." 2 Samuel 1: 23. 

No more, pale destroyer, boast 

Thy universal sway ; 
To heaven-born souls thy sting is lost, 

Through Christ we 've won the day. 



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